in a storm in my best dress (fearless)
by herecomesthepun
Summary: in which Percy finds it difficult to make friends, and Annabeth is the popular girl with a heart of steel. Percabeth, soulmate!AU. Two-shot.
1. i don't know why

**A/N** :

holy CRAP guys THIS IS FINISHED

i'm so happy because this is done! and it's here! and i'm so pleased about it! to put things in perspective i started this in july (jULY) and now it's february so that's seven months. AND according to my microsoft words stats i've spent over 300 hours on it, so i mean, that's a lot of hours.

ANYWAY

as you can see, no, i have not marked this complete, despite the fact that it's pushing around like 38k words. that's because there's a part 2 roughly the same length that i will be posting on sunday so #staytuned woo

also! one more thing! this story as actually asked for by a lovely guest called allineedisabook (if you're reading this and don't have a clue what i'm on about you left a comment on i believe long live very politely requesting a soulmate!au? so here i am [several months too late psshhsh whatever]) so i any of you have any requests for stories or whatever please feel free to just ask. they may take a great deal of months because i may get overexcited and well this may happen but im a tad low on inspiration at the moment so woo go wild

i want to say a big thanks to ma baes helena and rachel for being like my cheerleaders on this. i told you guys about it like back in december and you've been very patient so thank you for being lovely both of you (love u guys) and also to everyone who's like ever commented on anything! because they gave me lots of motivation to get this beast finished for you guys.

anyway i've rambled on enough (then again the entire thing is about 70k words i deserve to ramble smuch as i please) so without ado here it is! title is from fearless by taylor swift, and i really hope you enjoy!

* * *

 **in a storm in my best dress (fearless)**

* * *

 **marks**

yellow – friends

blue – family

red – soulmate

purple – social media followers

grey – strangers

* * *

Percy knows _all_ about the soulmate system.

Who doesn't? It's all anyone ever talks about. Soulmate this, soulmate that. _You'll meet your soulmate eventually!_ They're talked about in books, in movies, in the TV shows Sally watches after she thinks Percy has gone to sleep where everyone falls in love with a person who is not their soulmate. It's risqué and scandalous but it makes for good television and admittedly Percy always gets extremely wrapped up in the plotlines from where he's crouched behind the couch where Sally can't see him.

Point is, Percy knows the soulmate system. Maybe too well.

(That's debatable. Whatever.)

And frankly? He's a little sick of it.

Not for any reason like the reasons in Sally's TV shows. He doesn't have the nerve to be that scandalous, and actually the idea of one day finding someone who'll supposedly be his perfect match is kind of appealing. The real reason why he's fed up is because, rather unfortunately, he's not exactly what you would call a social butterfly. Quite the opposite, actually. Some would even call him unlikeable.

'Some' being Nico. But he's always been a negative little nugget so Percy decides to ignore him on this one.

("I mean, I'm not _wrong_ ," Nico remarks petulantly.

"Don't be rude, Nico," Piper chides. "You'll hurt his feelings."

Percy sulks.)

This wouldn't necessarily be a big deal, because who cares if you get a little shrewish now and then, but in a world where everyone you ever meet is reflected on your skin and Percy is best friends with Jason Grace it _matters_. Everyone has Marks, especially Jason Grace, because Jason Grace is as pretty on the inside as he is the outside and he's the kind of person who helps old ladies across the street and offers to show around new students, and when you're pitted against Jason Grace for something like the amount of Marks you have you're going to lose no matter who you are, because how could you ever compete against Jason Grace.

Especially if you're Percy. Because in a world where everyone has hundreds and thousands of Marks he only has six.

Percy thinks that the one thing he really hates about the Marks is how confrontational they are. Like, sure. He's not very good at making friends. Sometimes he can't get out of bed in the morning. When he was fifteen there was a two-week period where he couldn't even leave the house. That's all stuff that happens, and it's chill, because he knows that it happens. However, other people _don't_. They don't need to. _He_ doesn't need to, sometimes. When he's having a good night, surrounded by the people he loves, he doesn't have to think, "yo, am I _glad_ that my crappy mental health isn't here to say hello", and that's a great thing because it's awesome not to be depressing 24/7.

The Marks kind of all change that, you know?

If it weren't for the Marks, he could pretend that his anxiety wasn't a thing and that it wasn't a massive block to making friends. That's the only part that's irritated him. It's called the _soulmate_ system. _Soulmate_. Not the friendship system. There's really no reason for Marks to appear whenever you make a friend, honestly.

That's quite ridiculous.

The friendship Marks appear as yellow. Percy's got five of those. One for Jason. One for Grover. One for Nico, for Thalia, for Piper, and one for his mom, but that one's blue because she's family.

And honestly, he's _fine_ with that. He likes having a selected, small group of people he can confidently say he loves. The problem only arises when Marks start appearing for people you talked to once on the train, the shopkeeper you sometimes say hello to, the people you accidentally trip over and apologise to and then walk away from and _forget_. Those ones are grey, because they're irrelevant, and they fade after a year, but they're still there, and it means that you're nice enough to smile back at little kids on the buses when they smile at you and nod to the bus driver and make small talk with the lollipop lady.

And Percy hates it.

People like Jason have marks all over their body. Jason must have over three thousand. Even Nico has more than Percy does, and a few years ago Nico once managed to stay indoors for over one hundred hours without so much as stepping outside. Everyone in school has them, all over their arms and legs and backs and stomachs. Lots are purple – social media followers – but it still counts, and while everyone is used to Percy being the black sheep, or so to speak, of the entire school, he still gets odd looks.

It doesn't bother him as much as it used to. He takes slight comfort in the fact that most of their Marks are purple or grey, and that they have nowhere near the amount of yellow Marks as they do social media followers (an interesting fact he's recently learnt was that _bought_ social media followers also appear, and because he's not so fixated on his own Marks – or, you know, lack thereof – he always finds it rather funny whenever someone bounces into school with a whole new sleeve of purple Marks that have seemingly just appeared overnight) but he would be lying if it didn't sting a little.

Anyway.

Soulmates. They're a thing.

Your soulmate Mark always appears above your wrist. There's a space for it. Percy used to cover it with bracelets, back when everyone else did, but after he realised that not being able to talk in front of people without choking wasn't really that normal and that that little setback was the reason everyone else had little grey lines everywhere and he, well, didn't, he didn't anymore.

Oh well. It could be worse. His only Marks could be on his back or something. At least when people look at him they can see the six little lines on his arm and go, _okay, so he's a freak, but not as much as a freak as he would be if he didn't have any Marks at all_.

The universe kind of blessed him with that one. Whenever he feels like falling to pieces all he has to do is look at his arm and not focus on all the plain skin but instead focus on the Marks, and remember that sometimes the world can do you favours every once in a while.

Also, it's not as embarrassing. His Mark on Jason is on his lower back. Like. His lower, _lower_ back.

("It's a tramp stamp!" Jason yells gleefully when they find out.

"No it's not," Percy says.

"Yes it is," Thalia tells him. "Look at it, how can it _not_ be a tramp stamp.")

All in all, in a world where everyone is freckled with hundreds, thousands, sometimes even _millions_ , of Marks and Percy only has six, he's always one to stick out like a sore thumb. Sometimes he'll draw Marks on his arms whenever he goes out to the shops and cover everything else with baggy clothes just so he won't get stared at. (It's a little like an awkward feedback loop in which his anxiety is the antagonist in a long robe turning the gears, but whatever. He doesn't think about that analogy too much.)

Point is, he's not used to being swamped in friends.

So you can bloody well imagine his shock when he wakes up one morning and looks impulsively at his arm and there's one, two, three, four, five, six, _seven_ Marks on his line and holy crap the seventh is _red_.

* * *

Let's take it back a couple of months.

It's school. Average, sucky. Kind of dull. Percy has never been a massive fan of school, and not even because of the whole anxiety thing (although that's a big thing). He just– isn't very good at it. And it's all entirely his fault because he dozes in class and doesn't listen to anything, but when you aren't succeeding at something and you're forced to do it for seven hours a day five days a week– well, it gets a little suffocating.

"So," Mrs Peters continues, although Percy's not necessarily sure from what because he hasn't listened to anything she's been saying. "I'm going to pair you up and in your pairs organise a presentation on your thoughts on the topic we have just been discussing. The minimum amount of slides is ten. Thomas is handing out the rubric so you are clear on what you're meant to be doing and I'm putting the success criteria on the board. Are we clear?"

Everyone mumbles a vague 'yes'. Across the room Clovis Pallow lets out a snore.

"Good," Mrs Peters says. "Now, partners." She picks up a piece of paper and clears her throat. "Drew, Lacey."

Drew Tanaka pulls a face and her posse of well-dressed friends in matching expensive jeans snigger. Lacey Williams slides down in her seat.

"Jason, Percy."

Jason turns around and gives Percy a big thumbs-up. Percy grins back, so relieved his heart hammers in his chest. He's not quite sure on the teachers' stance on his anxiety – he's pretty sure his mom came in after he'd been diagnosed to have a word with the head about it, and something must have worked because Percy has never been paired with or put in a class that doesn't have at least one of friends in it. Still, every time a teacher announces groups his head begins to swell with nerves. Last year Amanda Lloyd committed suicide and none of the teachers so much as batted an eyelid. He's pretty sure all the times he's been assigned with a friend it's been pure coincidence.

At least, he hopes not. One day coincidence is going to end and he doubts he'll be able to even look at someone he doesn't know without bursting into tears.

He's so deep in his thoughts he almost misses the next pair.

"Annabeth, Piper."

Across the room, Annabeth Chase straightens with a smirk on her glossy lips. She looks over her shoulder back at him and Piper, arching a perfect eyebrow. It's a silent invitation. Percy has been on the sidelines for long enough to know how they play their games.

Piper lifts her chin defiantly and stares at her straight in the eyes. They hold it for a few moments before Annabeth smirks and turns back around.

As soon as she's not looking, Piper drops her head in her hands with a groan. "Every time," she mumbles. "Why her? Why not anyone else?"

"Maybe they see you have good chemistry," Percy suggests.

"I think they're mistaking chemistry for the urge to put my hands around her neck."

"You flatter me, McLean," Annabeth says without turning around.

"Good."

Percy has never really been sure of the bad blood between Piper and Annabeth Chase, how it started or why it's still going. He thinks it started long before he and Piper even became friends (which is a very long time). All he does know is that for some reason they both despise each other with a burning rage and they're dangerously nonchalant about it all.

Percy knows feuds. Normally they play out with fights, or screaming matches, or big canteen confrontations. Not with Piper and Annabeth Chase. They stay calm and cool. They've never gotten physical. Percy's not even sure they've touched before. But they both have brains like machines and whatever is bubbling between them is far more than just a childish teenage argument.

"You'll be fine," Percy says. "You know she won't hurt you."

"Not intentionally. If I stand too close I may die from inhaling all the bleach she scrubs herself with every morning."

"You should try it too," Annabeth tells her. She turns around again, grey eyes glittering innocently. "Maybe it'll wash the dirty colour of your skin away."

Piper doesn't move but her hand tightens around her pencil.

"Hey, now," Jason interrupts, turning around too. He gives Annabeth a look. "Come on, Annabeth, that was too far."

Both the girls ignore him. Percy knows better than to step in.

"What a surprise," Piper says coolly. "Looks like all that bleach reached your heart."

"Kitty's got claws."

Piper smiles, a cold kind of smirk that Percy doesn't like. "Figures," she says, as if Annabeth hadn't spoken. "It would explain a lot. Isn't that right, Bethie?"

Annabeth's eye twitches. There's something Percy's missing, because Piper has said much worse that has left her seemingly unbothered, but whatever the underlying message is it bites enough to stop Annabeth in her traces. She gives Piper one final, calculating look, and then turns back around in her seat.

Piper beams, now suddenly very pleased with herself. That part has always unsettled Percy, the way she can so fluidly switch between two people. Around her friends she's silly and stupid and laughs too much at her own jokes but around Annabeth it's like a cold, dictatorial fist has closed around her soul, and seeing the transition hurts Percy's head and also his heart a little. "Well," she says pleasantly. "That wasn't hard."

"We could get her in so much trouble for that," Jason says firmly. The racism is still bothering him.

"Don't worry about it, Jase," Piper says. "It's all harmless fun."

" _Harmless_ –?"

"It's best just to leave it, man," Percy tells him quietly. "No one understands anything about it except them."

"But– that was across the line!"

"Jason," Piper says, and Jason falls quiet.

"I just don't understand," he says.

Piper reassuringly rubs her hand between his shoulder blades. "It's all right," she says. "You don't have to. I'm a big girl, I can handle some forth-grade taunts."

Across the room, Percy sees Annabeth sit up straight. He doesn't know much about her, aside from the fact that she appears to have no soul, but one thing he does know is that her pride is one of her biggest flaws. It's fitting, he reckons. A queen never likes having her reputation threatened.

"Anyway," Piper says, picking up her pencil. "Percy, we still on for tomorrow?"

Percy nods.

"Good."

"You guys hanging out?" Jason asks.

"You want to join?" Percy offers.

"S'alright, I've got football practice 'til late." He picks up his pen and starts tap-tap-tapping it against his notebook. It's not a regular beat and Percy's eye twitches. "Where you guys planning on heading? I swear you finished your allowance for this month, Piper."

"I did. I took some fifties from Dad's wallet. He won't notice."

Jason shakes his head. He's fond. He tries to hide it but Percy sees the sparkle in his eyes. "You're gonna get caught one day."

"I know," Piper says. "That's what makes it so fun. Besides, we're not going out, anyway. I've got a Bio test coming up and Percy's helping me revise."

Percy smiles a little. Science, Biology especially, is the one thing he's good at. He doesn't know why he likes it so much, or why he's so good at it, but he's top of the class and even though he doesn't like bragging and that time Mrs Dyers had proudly announced to the class he had scored the highest on their baseline test he had been absolutely _mortified_ it always makes him glow a little with pride whenever one of his friends brings it up.

He supposes he has Mrs Dyers to thank, though. It's how Piper first noticed him, and with Piper came her boyfriend Jason and his sister Thalia, and through a lot of gentle introduction he had found himself three new friends. He also remembers how Annabeth Chase's fist had tightened around her pencil so hard it snapped in half when Mrs Dyers announced the test scores.

It was the first time anyone had beat her in anything. She never said anything to him, not even a mean glance in the hallway, but the flash of her grey eyes had done something in Percy. He never forfeits his tests, but he always makes sure to be one mark shy of one hundred percent. It's not a hand up to the throne. It's giving her space so she can get there, and when he scores highest she can blame herself because there was space to be the best but she didn't take it.

Most of the time she does, though. He wonders if she knows.

"Class dismissed!" Mrs Peters calls.

Percy waits behind a little with Piper and Jason as they absently chat together and be all gross and romantic, but he keeps an eye on Annabeth. She packs everything away neatly, perfectly, and then exits the classroom with a regal air. She's admittedly very pretty, but she dresses like a nun. There is not a strip of skin on show except her face. She's even stretched the sleeves of her cardigan to cover her hands.

Frowning, he wonders why.

* * *

Annabeth sits by herself today.

It's a bit unusual, but she doesn't mind. In fact, she prefers sitting by herself. She's sure everyone's wondering why but no one dares to ask. They're all terrified of her. It's all quite hilarious, she thinks drily. Even her friends are scared of her – it's why they all rush around doing what she asks. They're not even her proper friends, but they don't know that.

No one knows that bit.

Annabeth has no plans to ever tell anyone, but she does like to play it dangerous. It's always fun to push up her sleeves to just under her wrists and watch all her friends squirm as they subtly try and catch a glance of their Mark. It's probably their highest achievement in life. _I have a Mark on Annabeth Chase. My initials are on Annabeth Chase. I'm Annabeth Chase's_ friend _._

Oh, how little they know. Whatever. They'll fade soon enough.

Annabeth smooths her long blonde hair behind her ears and pulls out a textbook. She's got a Biology test next period and she wants to do some last-minute revision so she can be the top. Which she always is. The only person who comes anywhere close to her is that loser Percy Jackson with the horrific stutter, and that was only once. She needs to be the best.

There's no fear in that, though. He thinks she's so dumb. Please. She knows his tricks. His mistakes are silly and foolish. He's afraid of her, afraid of what will happen if he beats her again. She's not stupid enough to actually do anything to him physically, because that will get her in trouble, and her whole thing is perfect student with the perfect record. It makes messing with McLean so much more fun. It's all about breaking them open, finding out what makes them tick.

Jackson is an open book. He's not just terrified of her, he's terrified of everyone, even creepy Finley Blake who sits at the back of English and shoves pencils up his own nose. She's seen what happens when you push him too far.

She smiles mirthlessly to herself as she flips the page. She reckons it could be a double combo, killing two birds with one stone. McLean is tricky, trickier than Jackson, trickier than anyone at Marino, because her clockwork has nothing to do with her.

But it has everything to do with her friends.

Annabeth licks her lips. All she has to do is fail the Biology. Because otherwise there'd be nothing to provoke her and as much as people believe otherwise Annabeth isn't a sadist. Besides, she'd been meaning to have a little fun with McLean for a while. The project isn't an appropriate time or place, because that's an Education thing and anything inside the classroom Annabeth has to be extra sly about. But outside on the playground is child's play. No pun intended.

Her peaceful thought process is interrupted when a voice cuts through the silence.

"Move up, Chase."

Speak of the Devil.

Annabeth takes a sip of her juice. She doesn't even turn around. "What do you want, McLean?"

Piper throws herself down in the seat next to her. She's got an annoyed look on her face, and her clothes look like she just walked out of a charity bin. She's wearing a shirt that looks like at some point it belonged to her dad and a jean jacket that has been ripped beyond fashionable. She blows a strand of her choppy fringe out of her hair and Annabeth inwardly rolls her eyes. "You don't have to sound so thrilled, gosh," she mutters.

Annabeth levels her with a look. "What, this doesn't look pleased to see you?"

"Shockingly, no."

"Shouldn't that be a subtle hint that I don't want you here then, freak?"

The insult doesn't cut as much as she wants it to. Piper seems thoroughly unbothered. "We need to work on that History presentation," she says. "You know, the one we were assigned partners on?"

"Oh, how could I ever forget?"

Piper rolls her eyes.

It's hardly news to anyone that they don't like each other. Piper is too much in all the wrong places and Annabeth apparently gets on her nerves, but luckily for Piper she hasn't even gotten started yet today. She watches her, head tilted. She wonders what buttons she can push today. Piper has a lot of marionette strings that are just too tempting to take a tug at.

Annabeth takes another sip and subtly slides her eyes to the table in front of her. Piper's boyfriend Jason Grace and his freakish sister are sitting there, as well as an assortment of other weirdos with questionable hairstyles. Such a shame, too. She and Jason Grace could have made a wonderful couple.

It's disappointing he went for a piece of hippie trailer trash instead.

But that's not what she's focusing on today. She's already made her feelings about Jason Grace quite clear. She looks at the sister, the emo, the nerd, and then– _oh_. Cherry red lips slip into a smirk.

Oh, she knows just who to target this time.

Maybe sinking the Biology test can wait.

She knows how string them along. That's one of her best tactics – the paranoia. It's what makes her so deadly. She seldom does anything directly against the rules, but she's never backed down on a promise, and the feeling of keeping someone on their toes for months on end is just too satisfying to ruin.

Piper is an open book. You can't get anything on her – even racism doesn't work, and trust me, Annabeth has toed that line as heavily as she can – so to get down and dirty Annabeth knows it's about what she can get on her friends.

Oh, this is going to be too much fun.

"Your Highness?"

Annabeth looks back at Piper. She's pulled out a notebook from her backpack and is giving her an expectant look.

"As much as I appreciate the name, your tone suggests that it's rather sarcastic."

"Yes, well, I'm glad your brain is big enough to comprehend that." Annabeth's eye twitches but Piper doesn't notice. "We need to get started."

Annabeth ignores her and instead leans over the table. She's so deceptively casual. She knows how to make the tenseness of her muscles seem lax. It's all in the posture. "I was actually thinking we do something else."

Piper gives her an unimpressed look. "Bite me."

"Don't be like that, Pipes. I wanted us to get a chance to actually know each other."

"Cute."

"I'm just being nice."

"Is that what you had in mind when you told Jason I had slept with the whole basketball team?"

Annabeth smiles innocently. "Well, the past is past, isn't it?"

Piper isn't fooled. She presses her lips together. "What are you playing at, Chase?"

Annabeth laces her manicured fingers under her chin and looks at Piper dead in the eyes. Oh, she how she loves watching them squirm. "Percy Jackson," she says coolly. "How's he?"

The change is instant. Piper's nostrils flare. "Don't you dare," she hisses.

Annabeth raises an eyebrow. "Sore spot?"

"You keep his name out of your mouth, Chase. He's a good person. Don't even think about trying to get to him."

"Now, where would you get that idea?"

"I know your games, Annabeth. Percy has done nothing to you."

"You can keep your hair on, freak," Annabeth tells her icily. "I do have standards, and luckily for you creepy little loner boys don't make the cut for me. You can keep your asocial twerp to yourself." She regains her composure. "I was just wondering."

Piper's mouth tightens. "Yes, well. Maybe you should stop."

"And why would I do that?"

Piper doesn't respond right away. She looks Annabeth right in the eye, keeping her stare casually level. That's the only thing Annabeth respects her for. No one else can hold her gaze for longer than a few moments without backing down. Piper McLean may be disgusting and have the worst hairstyle in the world but one thing she's not is a coward.

"I wonder," Piper says, her voice calm, "what everyone would think if golden girl Annabeth Chase rolled up her sleeves."

Annabeth's hand stills under the table. "I doubt anything unusual."

"Mm." Piper doesn't break her gaze. "If you want the world to remain in the dark about your Marks I'd suggest you back off."

McLean's playing dirty. Annabeth feels winded but she narrows her eyes. "And what, exactly, about my Marks?"

Piper's stare doesn't falter. "I don't know, Annabeth," she says coolly. "You tell me."

She knows.

Annabeth schools her expression but inside her head is silently imploding. Piper McLean _knows_. She wonders how, why, _when_. When was she so careless? She's been so good lately, how could she have messed up?

Piper seems to be able to read her mind. It's the only option because Annabeth's face is impassive. "Changing rooms," she says. "If you don't want the school to know that every relationship you've ever had is fake then I'd suggest you're a little more cautious about where you take your clothes off."

"You know nothing."

"That's true. But I also know that you don't have a single yellow Mark on your arm and trust me, Chase, I can be just as cruel as you."

Annabeth doesn't doubt that for a second.

She and Piper McLean are worlds apart. Annabeth is elegant and Piper is scuffed around the edges, and they clash because their colours contrast and while Annabeth's hair is braided neatly at the back of her head Piper's is wild and tangled. But when you strip it back, they're both two machines who aren't afraid to get their knees dirty, just for vastly different reasons.

"I don't care if you share," Annabeth says.

"You sure about that, Your Highness? Your pretty little court will disintegrate before your very eyes."

"You don't have that power."

"I wouldn't be so certain. Girls get catty when they realise that their leader has never had a genuine feeling towards them the entire time. I'm sure they won't take too kindly to finding out they've been used as stepping stones for the past year."

"As if you know anything."

"Don't I?"

They both stare at each other. Neither are willing to admit to defeat, to break the gaze first, but somewhere there's a wail in the back of Annabeth's mind because she knows that Piper has her backed against a wall.

Finally, she breaks. "Fine," she spits. "I'll leave your precious Percy Jackson alone."

"Good." Piper picks her notebook back up and tucks it under her armpit. "Well, since we wasted this whole lunchtime having a nice little chat, we'll have to do this elsewhere."

Annabeth smiles, pained. "Joy."

"You free tomorrow after school?"

"I may be."

"My house, then."

"Who ever said I wanted to go to your house, McLean?"

"Me," Piper says. She takes Annabeth's juice and closes her lips around the straw, taking a big sip and then nodding a little. "Orange. Nice."

Annabeth's nostrils flare. "I paid for that."

Piper takes another sip and winks at her. "I'll see you later, Chase."

* * *

Percy knows something's off the moment he arrives at the McLean residence.

Aphrodite opens the door when he knocks. She doesn't look any different to how she normally does. According to Piper all she does is float around the house all day wearing silk nightgowns and pearls, waiting for her next modelling gig (of which she gets lots, much to Piper's chagrin), and Percy honestly thinks she's right, because he doesn't think he's seen her in anything but expensive dresses. Today is no exception, except she's wearing a confused look as well, which– is not normal. Aphrodite has always been rather fond of Percy, giving him delicate pecks on each cheek so she doesn't smudge her makeup and squishing his face between her manicured hands and gushing about how handsome he is.

But she looks surprised, like Percy isn't meant there, and that's probably the worst feeling Percy could ever get.

"Oh!" she says. "Percy! What a pleasant surprise!"

He shuffles a little uncomfortably. He doesn't look her in the eye. He never has. That's why she's not a Mark. She never seems to mind. "Hi."

"Come in, come in!" Aphrodite ushers him indoors. "I'm not going to lie, Percy, my love, I wasn't expecting you today, but I'm so glad that you did turn up. God knows that other girl has my hackles up."

 _Other girl?_

Percy's heart falls to the bottom of his shoes.

"Well, you're here now," Aphrodite says pleasantly, unaware of the pit opening up in his stomach. "Goodness knows you can be the one to teach that girl some manners. You're a charming boy, you should be able to do the trick." She floats over to the staircase and starts melodramatically making her way up. For the first time Percy sees her whole body and notices her shoulders and hair are littered in what looks like rose petals. "They're in the living room, by the way!"

She disappears into a room with a theatrical sweep of her arms. Percy is left standing in the hallway with his heartbeat somewhere in his bloodstream.

He doubts Piper would ever maliciously overrun their plans. She's not like that. It was probably an accident – he reckons one of the girls from cheerleading might have followed her in. That happens a lot. And even though most of them are perfectly nice he knows there are a few who are less than pleasant so maybe that's what Aphrodite was talking about.

He takes a deep breath and glares at himself in one of the seven mirrors hanging from the walls ("did you think I was kidding when I said Mom was vain?" Piper asked when he first came around and gawked at them). "Come on, Percy," he says firmly. "It's just a girl. You've talked to girls. Piper is a girl. Aphrodite is a girl. Just a girl. Just a girl."

Unsurprisingly, he doesn't feel any better.

He only feels worse when he tentatively pushes the living room door open and patters indoors. The two girls are sitting on the sofa, which is shaped like an L and snakes around the edge of the room like a serpent, and from where he's standing Percy can only see Piper's face. She looks up and as soon as her eyes fall on Percy she beams, which loosens the ball in Percy's chest a little, but it tightens almost immediately as soon as he looks at the other person.

"Oh," the other person says, very unimpressed. "You didn't tell me you were inviting the charity case."

Percy's heartbeat begins to pick up.

Sitting on Piper's sofa, wearing a grey dress and ballet flats with her hair flat ironed and hanging down to her elbows, is Annabeth Chase. She's got a calculating look in her eyes and she tilts her head to the side, tapping her pencil against her notebook. Percy doesn't like the way she's glancing at him. He's had his fair share of rude stares – confused, incredulous, disgusted, the usual – but he's never had anyone look at him like he's a machine ready to be decoded and he hates it.

Piper barely refrains from growling. "His name," she snaps, "is _Percy_."

"I don't care."

Percy doesn't feel welcome in this house. Normally Piper's mansion is like a second home to him but with an unleashed lion perched on the end of her sofa with one perfect eyebrow cocked he wants nothing more than to run and hide. He considers the pros and cons of sprinting back out the door.

"Well," Annabeth says finally. "I suppose you're here now. No use in sending you back."

Piper's nostrils flare. "You're in my house, Chase. I'd be careful."

"Of what? Your atrocious fashion sense or the mute?"

Percy finally finds his tongue. "I'm not mute."

"Could have fooled me." She leans back and crosses her legs. "What are you even doing here?"

"As a matter of fact," Piper says, "I invited him."

"Doesn't seem like very titillating company, if you ask me."

"I didn't."

A muscle in Annabeth's jaw ticks.

"I can leave," Percy says weakly.

"You do that."

"No," Piper says. "Please stay."

Percy is unsure.

"Ignore Annabeth," Piper tells him, like she's not there. "She's like a grumpy cat. If you don't respond for long enough she'll stop yowling."

Annabeth straightens. She's insulted, but she won't show it.

Instinctively, Percy's eyes flicks to her arms.

It's something he's picked up. He's learnt to read people – it's another part of his anxiety. If he gets a good enough grip on someone he knows who will play nice and who to avoid. But normally everything comes from the Marks, because they're the telltale floodgates to everyone.

Even him. His Marks say he's not good with friends and he only has six people he loves in this world.

But she's covered all the way up. She's wearing black tights and she's pulled the sleeves of her cardigan so they come to her knuckles, and her dress has a high neck that covers her collarbones.

Annabeth has always dressed rather conservatively.

For the first time, he wonders if it's because of her Marks.

She notices him staring. "Got a problem, freak?" she snaps.

"Don't call him that," Piper threatens.

Percy swallows. "Where are your Marks?"

Both Piper and Annabeth look a little surprised.

Annabeth is the first to respond. "Wouldn't you like to know."

"I'm not joking."

Annabeth pauses. "Why do you care?"

"Why do you always cover yourself up?"

"I don't."

"Then roll up your sleeve."

"How about you roll up yours first and then we'll start talking Marks."

She's poking at old scars. By this time it doesn't bother him. "How many Marks do you have, Annabeth Chase?"

"Someone's inquisitive."

"Answer the question."

"Nine hundred and eighty-seven."

Percy doesn't know if she's lying.

"Can I see them?"

"No."

Percy steels himself. "Nothing will shock me."

"I'm not lying."

"I never said you were."

Annabeth watches him for a very long time. "Kitty's got claws. Who knew."

Percy stares hard at the space below her eyebrow. It's become an instinct – don't look them in the eye. If he looks them in the eye they come up as a Mark, and even though his six Marks are the thing that sets him apart from the rest of the world and he would kill to stop sticking out as harshly as he does, getting a Mark stresses him out, because it's another person he has to try and keep in his life. And when they leave, for the next year until it fades it will be a reminder of someone he could have kept but didn't.

"I want to see your Marks," he says.

Piper is glancing between them. She knows something.

"Tough."

"You're hiding."

"You won't suss me out, Sherlock."

"You cover yourself head to toe every day and I'm a bit of an expert on crappy Marks, so I wouldn't bet on it."

Annabeth looks a bit surprised at his words. He doesn't blame her – he feels the same way. He didn't know he possessed fire.

Or maybe he doesn't. Annabeth is sharp as flint, and he's as black as coal.

It's clear Annabeth doesn't know how to respond. She turns awkwardly to Piper, who's still staring at Percy with a slightly impressed look on her face. Her eyes are glittering, and something kicks to life in Percy's chest. He's made her proud. "Do we really need him here, McLean?" she asks stiffly.

Piper's smirk grows. "Why, Chase? Feeling threatened?"

"He's distracting us from our project. That's why you invited me in the first place."

 _Figures_ , Percy thinks to himself. He doubts anyone would really want Annabeth around for anything other than schoolwork.

When Piper and Annabeth turn to face him in shock he realises with a flush of embarrassment that he spoke out loud.

Piper squeaks out a little laugh. It would ease Percy a little if Annabeth wasn't still staring at him with eyes of hurricanes. She doesn't look angry. Her face is unreadable, but her eyes are something else. That's where Percy's fire comes from, he realises. She's the flint and when he rubs her the wrong way the sparks catch him too. When she speaks her voice is cold. "You talk," she says, voice frosty, "like you're unaware people think of you the exact same way."

Old wounds. Annabeth Chase may be smart but she's unoriginal. "At least I don't have the likeability of a piece of lint."

"At least I'm able to actually talk to people."

"Right, haven't heard that one before."

Annabeth doesn't like knowing she's done something wrong. The skin around her eyes tightens. "You're not even meant to be here."

"Piper wants me here."

" _I_ don't."

"Well, I don't care."

"I want you out."

"This is my house, Chase," Piper says mildly. "Play nice."

Annabeth's face pinches. She's stuck. Unbelievably Percy is holding his own, something even he is surprised about, so she can't keep going, and he knows she would rather shoot herself in the foot then walk away now.

It's funny, in a way. This is Annabeth's territory. Well, physically speaking, it's Piper's, but Percy is standing by himself in the middle of the room, more naked and exposed than he thinks he's ever let himself be, and Annabeth is on the sofa with another person. It's her ball game they're playing, not his, because Percy has never been one for confrontation, but she's losing, and for someone like Annabeth Chase that's not an option.

However, before any of them can make the next move, the door bursts open and Aphrodite floats in with a tray of tea. "Hello, my dears!" she chirps. She sails past Percy with a friendly smile and Percy catches a whiff of perfume so strong he almost splutters. "Sorry to interrupt, Piper, my love, but I have come bearing beverages." She puts the tray down on the table, completely oblivious to the tension in the room. She straightens up and smiles. "Now, who wants what?"

Piper sighs. "Mom."

"None of that, Piper. I made three different batches – chamomile, jasmine and herbal. You'll have to decide between yourself who gets what." Aphrodite claps her hands together. "How's the studying going, girls?"

Annabeth forces a smile. "Good."

"That's wonderful to hear," Aphrodite says, pleased. The sarcasm flies straight over her head. "Well, I'll leave you all to it, then. I just got a call from a modelling agency in Hawaii, so I must pack."

"You do that," Piper says.

Aphrodite beams at them and practically dances out the room. Percy is still half-stunned from her perfume to speak.

Piper reaches for the jasmine tea first, cradling the cup in her hands and leaning back in the sofa. Annabeth glances at Percy, as if waiting for him to move forward and take the next mug – so at least she has manners, that's nice – but choosing has always been one of the things Percy hates most. He just shrugs a little and curls his hand further around his stomach.

Annabeth watches him for a few moments, before reaching forward and taking the chamomile.

Chamomile has always been Percy's favourite. He hates herbal tea. But he doesn't say anything and instead tentatively reaches for the last mug and perches on the end of the sofa, sipping at it.

"So," Piper says after a few moments of peaceful tea-drinking. "Perce, what were you thinking of looking at today?"

Percy glances at Annabeth but she's pointedly staring down at the pile of open notebooks on the coffee table. "Uh," he says, "maybe we could start with atomic structure?"

"Grand," Piper says. She turns to Annabeth. "Annabeth, love, would you be a dear and finish up the report? I'll do the slideshow and send them to you to make up for it, but duty does call and the Biology test is tomorrow."

Annabeth nods and stiffly stands up, shouldering her bag. She's still got her shoes on and her bag is directly next to her. She's not comfortable here, either, Percy realises. For all her talk Annabeth Chase is still intimidated by unfamiliarity, and somehow the thought soothes Percy. While their unease massively differs, it's still somewhat comforting to know that the queen of the school can be just as easily daunted as he can.

Piper frowns as she watches her. "Wait, where are you going?"

Annabeth pauses. "Uh, home?"

"Why?"

"You're– studying?"

"Nonsense, you don't have to leave," Piper tells her. "Sit down."

"But– I'd just sit here and work."

"So? That's what we'd be doing anyway. Besides, we're having macaroni tonight. You don't want to miss macaroni, honestly."

Percy stares at her. What is she _doing_?

Annabeth almost seems to sense this and turns to glance at him, as if gauging his reaction, and he quickly looks down before she can meet his eyes. He sure as hell doesn't want Annabeth Chase to stay for dinner and he's not quite sure why Piper would either but he doesn't want his opinion to jade Annabeth's choice so he keeps quiet.

He'll ask Piper later. Like, what possible reason is there to invite your arch enemy to dinner?

Annabeth hesitates. It's the first time Percy has seen her anything but sure. "I wouldn't want to intrude," she says uncomfortably.

"It'd just be us," Piper says. "Mom'll be too busy voguing in the mirror upstairs for her fashion shoot."

That doesn't seem to make Annabeth feel any better. She fidgets with her bag strap, before it all seems to get too much and she rushes out, "I think I'm just gonna go home."

Piper is very undeterred. "Suit yourself," she says. She turns to Percy. "So, where should we start?"

Percy gets distracted for a second by her question. When he looks up again, Annabeth is gone.

* * *

Annabeth approaches Piper in the cafeteria.

She's standing in the lunch queue, waiting for her turn. It's more public here but it's better to get her here then when she's sitting down with her friends, because at that point all the people will be paying attention. Here there are more ears but no one will be bothering to listen in, too busy jostling and trying to subtly skip the queue.

When Annabeth slides in next to her, Piper looks a bit surprised. "Oh," she says. "Chase."

Annabeth nods stiffly at her. "McLean."

"What are you doing hanging around with us peasant scum?" They move forward. "I thought you had a kingdom to attend to."

She thinks she's so funny. Annabeth rolls her eyes. "It's about the project. We didn't get to finish it yesterday because you double-booked with the dweeb so we need to reschedule. Are there any dates you're free that don't involve any of your moronic friends?"

"I'd go doing a self-examination before you want to bring up my friends."

Annabeth sighs. "Will you just let _go_ of that?"

"Not really, it's given me all sorts of fascinating leads on theories about you," Piper says. "Oh, don't look so panicked, I haven't told anyone. But the next time you want to insult my friends I just want to remember who's the one with friends in this equation."

"I'd rather have no friends than your motley crew."

"Well, luckily for you that's a reality," Piper tells her. "And to answer your previous question, I have next week Monday."

"Are you seriously doing something every night for the rest of the week?"

"It's called a social life, sweetie, you should try it sometime. Oh, wait." They move forward. "But if you're really that desperate to hang out before Monday I can give you my number, if you want."

"I wouldn't willingly touch you with a barge pole if I had the choice," Annabeth grumbles, handing over her phone.

"And yet here you are, standing next to me of your own accord," Piper says pleasantly. She types her number in, and then hands the phone back. "Have you finished the essay yet?"

"Yes."

"Can you send it to me tonight? I wanna proof-read it."

Annabeth's eye twitches. "It doesn't need to be proof-read."

"Fine, colleague-examined, whatever. We can't make a presentation as a team if I haven't the foggiest idea what you've written in the report."

Annabeth sighs. "Fine. Have you started on the PowerPoint?"

"Not yet. I was going to tonight."

"What about your 'social life'?"

"There's a talent called 'balancing the necessities'. Anyway, I'm going to Jason's tonight so I can do it there."

Piper must realise that bringing up Jason was a mistake because her face twists like she'd just tasted something foul. Annabeth takes the opportunity gladly. It's not often Piper slips up.

"Jason, huh?" she says. "What are you going to do there, then? Get frisky?"

"I can be around my boyfriend and not want to pounce on him twenty-four seven."

Annabeth _tsks_. "If I had Jason I would treat him the way he deserves to be treated."

"Good luck."

"Thanks." They move forward. "I also presume his freak show of a sister is going to be there, too?"

"You mean Thalia?"

"I don't care for names."

"Right, of course, Your Highness." Piper sobers almost immediately. "She's gonna be there. She can help me with the PowerPoint, actually."

"I'd rather she not. I don't need parasites dragging our grade down."

"The only parasite I see here is you, Chase."

"Creative."

"I'm not kidding." Piper turns to face her. The conversation has turned. "You think I don't notice you literally thrive off of destroying people?"

"That's a bit of a stretch."

"Not really. That whole stunt with Percy yesterday? For the first time someone was beating you at your own game and you were shrivelling. You're pathetic, Chase, honestly. I can only imagine how sad you really have to be for your only source of life being trying to bring people down."

Annabeth places her hand over her heart. "That hurts."

"Just you wait, Chase. Something's going to come bite you in the arse, and when it happens I will _laugh_."

"You're not any more innocent then I am, McLean. If karma's coming around for me it's sure as hell gonna take you too."

"Maybe so," Piper says. "But if it gets you to realise how appalling you are then I'm all in."

"This isn't a movie, McLean. Open your eyes. In real life the hero doesn't get justice."

"But more often than not the villain does," Piper says, and suddenly Annabeth feels like her throat is filled with cotton wool. The queue moves forward, and it takes Piper with it. Annabeth steps to the side and watches as Piper gets closer the front of the line. "Monday, after school, Chase. Don't forget."

* * *

"You are kidding, aren't you," Annabeth says.

Percy stares at her and then at Piper. "Piper!"

Piper is wearing an apologetic smile that looks much too mischievous to be genuine. "Whoops," she says. "Looks like I double-booked again. How unfortunate. Now you both have to stay and become friends, what a shame."

Annabeth sighs and brushes a strand of her straight hair out of her face. "I'm beginning to think you're doing this on purpose."

"Now where would you get that idea?" Piper asks innocently. She shifts to the side of the sofa and pats the space next to her – and next to Annabeth, Percy notes. "Come, sit, Percy. Annabeth, put away your pen. Now that Percy's here there's no use in sending him away, so we can just sit and chat."

Yeah, Piper's doing it on purpose.

Percy should have really known. She had been perfectly ordinary throughout the weekend, and on Sunday she had asked if he wanted to come around to hang out with her and Thalia. Conveniently, Thalia hadn't been at school on Monday for him to talk to about the whole matter, so he had suspected nothing of it and turned up to her house after a short trip back home to dump his bag.

And who's here. Annabeth Chase.

"McLean, we really need to get this project down," Annabeth says through gritted teeth. "If you keep inviting _him_ we're not gonna get anything done."

"Oh, calm down, you stodge," Piper says. "Come, Percy, sit."

Percy glances at Annabeth, as if he's afraid she going to eat him. Which he is, to be honest. Annabeth Chase is a breed of girl he dreads coming across ever again. She's as complex as a puzzle and she keeps her Marks hidden – she's like a live bomb and when she explodes Percy really doesn't want to be in her detonation zone. However, on his other side is Piper, who's peaches and pretty eyes, so he tentatively lowers himself between them.

Just as he sits down, though, Annabeth rockets upwards like she's afraid touching him will give her a disease. "I need a drink," she says all in a rush, and then she dashes out the room.

Percy purses his lips, slightly hurt. He knows that Annabeth doesn't like him, because he's not really sure she likes anyone, but the blatant rejection still hurts.

Piper on the other hand, is quite unbothered. She adjusts her sweatshirt and beams down at the pile of notebooks on the table. "Well, that didn't take long," she says cheerfully.

Percy furrows his eyebrows. "What didn't take long?"

"Annabeth leaving," Piper says. "As soon as you came within a foot of her she bolted like you had an infection."

Percy frowns. "You don't have to rub it in."

"Oh, Percy," Piper says, and then she's putting her arm around him. "I didn't mean it like that at all. I just meant that the whole reason I invited you around here, apart from your dashing personality and the fact I like hanging out with you, of course, is to get Annabeth on her toes. She'd been getting on my last nerve recently and for some reason you're the person that irks her the most."

And yet she had offered for Annabeth to stay for dinner. Go figure.

Percy rolls her eyes. "I really doubt that."

"I'm dead serious," Piper insists. "That stunt you two pulled the last time you were here? That was _electric_. I have never seen her so floored. That's the first time she couldn't respond."

"I didn't even say anything that good."

"That's not the point. I think it's just the fact that it came from you."

Percy sits up straighter. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well. You're rather shy. Not even I would expect something like that to come from someone like you. That threw Annabeth off. I think she likes power, likes being right, see. And then she was so wrong about you, and that _got_ to her."

Percy laughs. "What about you?"

"Oh, I'm plenty annoying," Piper says amiably. "But you – you _unnerve_ her."

"That's stupid."

"Maybe. But she does something to you, too."

"No she doesn't."

"Percy, I have _never_ ever seen you pull something like that with someone you don't know. Least of all Annabeth Chase!"

"I don't know where that came from, either," Percy admits. "I just– she's fascinating, isn't she?"

"She's infuriating, if that's what you mean."

"Well, that too, I suppose, but she is really interesting. Like, why does she cover her Marks?"

Piper tenses. It would be unnoticeable if she wasn't plastered to Percy's side. She knows the answer. "Maybe she's insecure," she says instead. Percy doesn't push. He understands secrets are secrets.

Before Percy can say anything else, Annabeth comes back in the room with a glass of water clutched tight in her hand. She looks over at Piper and Percy and their close proximity and says in an emotionless voice, "Your standards must be worse than I thought if you're already cheating on Jason with the freak."

Percy keeps quiet.

"Oh, Annabeth," Piper says, like she hadn't spoken. "Your presence is always so pleasant."

"I know." Annabeth sits down on the sofa, leaving a hefty space between herself and Percy. "I could hear you guys talking from the kitchen. What was it about? Sounded intense."

Her voice is that kind of monotone where Percy isn't sure if she cares or not.

Piper smiles at her, a little coldly. "We were talking about how much of a joy you were to hang around," she says. "You know. Just the way you, like, cover everything with frost and lifelessness is so endearing."

Annabeth boredly raises an eyebrow. "My heart warms at your kindness."

"I think I can hear it thawing from here," Piper says. "Would make sense. Always knew you couldn't do it by yourself."

Annabeth's grip on the glass tightens.

Something's changed between them. Percy's not sure what it is, but it's big, because he can feel the shift in their dynamic. He knows how these fights play out. Normally they're so intense because they're both on the same level and they both try to desperately one-up each other but they can't. Now they can – or rather, Piper can. She's gained an extra rung.

And by Annabeth's expression, that's not sitting well with her.

For the first time, Percy interjects.

"Come on, guys," he says softly. "Let's just do our work."

It's the wrong thing to say. Annabeth whirls on him, her eyes _seething_. She points at him furiously. "That's what I've been trying to _do_!" she hisses. "That's all I've ever been trying to _do_ but you keep bloody _showing up_ and _ruining_ everything–"

Piper stands up, her tone low. "Annabeth–"

"No, _listen_ to me. I am _sick_ and _tired_ of showing up here to do this stupid project and him being here _every single time_." She turns to him, eyes blazing. "What are even _doing_ here? You're useless! You literally have no reason to be here except for the fact that you're a clingy overbearing _baby_ who's too _pathetic_ to look anyone directly in the eyes and you just want the validation of being wanted. Newsflash, idiot – you're _not_ wanted. Piper doesn't want you here, I sure as _hell_ don't, so how about you do us all a favour and _piss the hell off_!"

"Annabeth!" Piper shouts.

The damage has already been done. She's said everything.

Percy sits quietly on the sofa.

He feels like she has just struck him across the face with a red-hot whip.

The thing is, is that he knew all of it already, and that's maybe what hurts the worst. He's not sure how, or even why, but somehow she knew all his weak spots. Most people look at his six Marks and think that's what he's sensitive about, and sure, they're not wrong, but he's become so used to that being his Default Flaw that it doesn't bother him so much anymore. But Annabeth Chase is smarter than that, smarter than everyone, because she knows how to get someone to break.

Percy underestimated her. She shot a gun in the dark and hit the bullseye.

For most of Percy's life, one of his biggest fears has always been not being good enough. Not being good enough for friends, his family, the soulmate system. The Marks terrify him, not because they set him apart but because they remind him of how he can't keep hold of people well enough. A new Mark means a new person he has to try impress, try and not scare off.

And somehow Annabeth managed to know that. He feels like his entire body has been submerged in ice.

Shakily, he stands up. Piper's eyes flash.

"Percy–"

"No, it's okay," he says. His voice is surprisingly calm for how he feels. "You heard her."

Annabeth's face is emotionless. She juts her jaw and doesn't speak.

"I'll just leave," Percy says. "It's okay."

But it's not. He thinks he's going to cry and he hates the waver of his voice because he knows they both can hear it and dammit he's not going to let Annabeth take his pride away from him, too.

Piper takes a step towards him. "Ignore her, Percy, please–"

Percy swallows. "It's okay, Piper."

Piper's eye twitches. She whirls on Annabeth. Percy can't see her expression but he knows she's spitting fire. Annabeth doesn't even move. "Are you _serious_ , Chase? Do you not have even a shred of humanity?"

Annabeth's voice is cool when she says, "He deserves it."

Percy takes a step backwards. She may as well have backhanded him across the face.

Piper turns around to him. Her eyes are wide and desperate but even now Percy can't look at her. She's one of his best friends and he loves her to the ends of the earth but this house doesn't feel safe anymore, because there's a venomous animal loose now and if he doesn't want to get bitten he's going to have to get out of its mouth. He takes a step backwards.

"I need to go," he says. "I need to go."

"Percy–"

"I need to go." He takes another step backwards, then another, and then he's backing out the room so fast he almost bumps into the person walking through the doorframe.

He whirls around. It's Aphrodite. She looks surprised.

"Where are you going?" she asks, concerned. She smiles at him but Percy's mind is going a hundred miles an hour and suddenly her smile has turned evil, like she's going to try and take a bite out of him, too, and all he can do is let out a low moan of despair and hightail it out of there.

He only feels the tears when he's out the gate. He thinks he may have been crying all along.

* * *

The lunch line is becoming Annabeth's safe haven now.

She spots Piper almost immediately from across the canteen. She's standing by herself, in the queue, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet, trying to see what food they're serving over the top of everyone's heads. She sticks out like a sore thumb with just her clothes. All of her friends do, actually. Annabeth should consider investing in an ugly thirty-year-old jean jacket for high-vis. But she hasn't just sought her out to make fun of her, although that would be highly entertaining, because she's pretty sure she's got a feather in her hair today and honestly these jokes just write themselves.

As much as it physically pains her, she needs to set things straight.

Yesterday was– confusing. It's not the first time Annabeth has made someone cry, and probably not the last, either. People are very touchy. All it takes is a few words. But there's just something about Jackson, about the way he bolted, about the look of pure _disgust_ on Piper's face – that's not normal. People don't run away from her.

Mean? Oh yes. Unnecessarily pathological, sometimes? Sure.

But a monster? No.

Setting her shoulders back, she makes her way towards her.

Piper doesn't notice her until she's wedged herself in the queue behind her (another pro of being top of the food chain: you get whatever you want whenever you want, and no one can complain), but even when Annabeth is pressed up behind her she doesn't even look at her. Annabeth feels slightly insulted, and wonders if maybe she didn't realise it was her. She taps her on the shoulder, just to make sure.

"I don't even want to look at you right now," Piper says.

Oh, for heaven's sake. "You're being childish."

"Oh, _I'm_ being childish?" Piper turns to look at her in the eyes for the first time, cocking an eyebrow. "Well, I'm sorry for not being nice to the same girl who sent my best friend sprinting out my house in _tears_."

Annabeth's eye twitches. "Come on, Piper."

Piper sighs. "Just piss off, Chase. I really don't want to talk to you right now. Go and discuss how to break hearts with all your friends or something."

"Stop being so difficult, for goodness _sake_. I want to talk to you."

"Well, it's your lucky day, 'cause I really don't."

Bloody hell. Annabeth sighs a little and squares her shoulders. The queue moves forward and she takes the opportunity to stall as much as she can. "I think I owe you an apology," she says quietly.

Piper stops so suddenly the kids behind her nearly walk into her. "I'm _sorry_?"

"Don't make me repeat it."

"You're _apologizing_? That's a first."

"You're causing a scene, McLean, come on."

Obediently, Piper steps forward so they're next to each other. The kids behind them let out irritated grumbles. "Well," Piper says. "This is not a day I thought I'd ever see."

"Hysterical. Really."

"What are you even apologizing for?" Piper asks. "Unless you've actually grown a soul and are apologizing for all your out-of-line racism in the past, in which case please feel free to grovel at my feet too."

"I meant on the behalf of Jackson."

"If you're doing that, don't do it to me," Piper says. "Do it to Percy."

"But I can't."

"And why not?"

Annabeth scowls at her.

"The boy is harmless," Piper says. "So long as you don't unnecessarily ferocious towards him you should be fine. Just– don't be yourself, that's all."

"Wow, thanks."

"That wasn't a joke," Piper says, her voice serious. "The last time you were yourself you made the boy cry, Chase. You owe it to him big time. If you mess this up I won't let you anywhere near him ever again."

"He's not your _child_."

"No, but he's my friend," Piper says firmly. "And you did a crap thing. When you get friends, you'll understand."

She doesn't sound patronizing or pitiful. Instead she sounds soft. She loves Percy a lot, Annabeth realises, and suddenly there's a lump in her throat and her heart aches. She swallows it and nods a little. "Okay."

"Now," Piper says, nudging her. "Go."

Annabeth turns and sees Percy sitting by himself at a table. She knows that this isn't a further demonstration of how sad and pitiful he is (although she supposes it could be) because that's where he sits every lunchtime and soon enough it will fill up with his friends because they buy food and he brings it in from home.

She needs to be fast. If she doesn't act quick enough the table will be full of people like Thalia Grace and Grover Underwood and while she's doesn't quite mind Grover she _despises_ Thalia Grace with a burning passion, and she'd rather her apology not be public. Especially not in front of Thalia Grace.

Taking a deep breath, she heads over.

Percy doesn't spot her until she's only a few feet away, and when he does he flinches like she's just hit him. It does something funny to Annabeth's heart, twists it a little, because she knows that she deserves it for what she said, and even though she prides herself for not letting other people get in her way something about the way Percy won't even look at her causes a little pang in her chest. She purses her lips and delicately perches on the seat across the table from him.

He doesn't look at her in the eyes. That's expected, because he doesn't properly look anyone in the eyes, not even teachers, but it _kills_ Annabeth when she sees his gaze slowly catch upwards and focus on the spot to the left of her. He's trying, she realises. But his hands are shaking beneath the table.

 _You're a clingy overbearing baby who's too pathetic to look anyone directly in the eyes._

"You don't have to," she says. The softness in her voice surprises even her. "Look me in the eyes, I mean. It's okay."

Percy's shoulders are still rigid. "M'not trying."

"Yes you are. You don't have to. It makes you uncomfortable."

"Since when do you care about what makes me uncomfortable?"

Touché.

Annabeth laces her fingers. Her hands are sweating, although she's not sure why. "Look, Jackson," she says. "I– I'm sorry, about what I said yesterday. I was out of line."

Percy scoffs. " _No_ , where would you get _that_ idea?"

"Don't make this harder for me. I'm trying, all right?"

"Yeah, well, not hard enough." Percy rolls his eyes and scoops up his lunch. "Come back and apologise when you actually mean it."

"Oh, for crying out loud." Annabeth grabs his wrist before he can go completely. Percy wrenches it out of her grasp but he stops moving, at least, and Annabeth bursts into a ramble before he can start again. "Listen, Percy. I'm sorry. I– I wasn't thinking straight, I was just mad."

"Over a _project_?"

Annabeth flails. "Well. A bit more than that, I suppose."

"Uh-huh." Percy is unimpressed. She's going to have to try harder.

Crikey, apologizing is hard. No wonder she's never done it before.

She sighs. "Fine, oh my God. You were just getting on my nerves, all right? You were just– _everywhere_ I went, and that just annoyed me, and then when you showed up at Piper's house that was just the cherry on top of the cake and I let my feelings get the best of me and I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have said any of that. None of that was true." She pauses. "Well, actually."

Percy cocks an eyebrow. " _Oh_?"

"No, I didn't–" She sighs. "Fine. You insult me, okay? Make up for it."

That stops him in his tracks. He frowns, puzzled. "I'm– sorry?"

"You heard me. Insult me. Say the worst thing you want about me. I don't know how else to make it up to you. I won't get mad, promise."

Percy tilts his head. There's a small pause. "Have you ever upset your friends before?"

The word 'friends' stings but Annabeth schools her expression. "Why?"

"That's really not how you make it up to someone."

"I don't do this a lot, okay?"

"I can tell." Percy looks at her, up and down like he would an examination. He still can't look at her in the eyes and she knows the attention she's bringing to him is making him uncomfortable but there's something about the way he tilts his head that makes her head spin. "Can I ask a question instead?"

Dear God. Oh well, if it'll get McLean off her case. "Go ahead."

"You have to answer."

"I don't have to do anything."

"You have to do this."

He's right, but she's not sure why. She sighs.

"Fine, what?"

He purses his lips and tilts his head. For a split second Annabeth suddenly feels a pit of dread open up in her stomach because there are a lot of things she doesn't feel comfortable answering and Percy isn't stupid, but then all that fear is replaced with confusion when instead of asking something deep and personal Percy says, "What's your favourite colour?"

She blinks. "My– favourite colour?"

"Yes."

" _That's_ your question?"

"Is there a problem?"

"No, not at all. I mean. Yeah, no." Annabeth rocks backwards on her feels. "Wow, um. If I had to pick, probably purple? I don't know."

Percy nods. "Okay."

"That was a dumb question, Jackson."

"You insulted me again. You owe me another question."

"Absolutely _not_ –"

"Why do you cover your Marks?"

Annabeth stops in her traces.

"I'm not answering that," she says.

"You have to."

"Listen, nitwit, I answered your dumb colour question, okay, I don't need to answer any more."

"That's another question."

"For heaven's _sake_ –"

"Annabeth."

"I'm not answering that question, Jackson. Don't accept my apology, whatever, turn the whole bloody _school_ against me while you're at it, I don't care. I'm just not answering that."

"I think you forget who you're talking to here."

She flinches and holds her elbows tightly, almost like she's trying to protect herself. "My– my Marks aren't messed up, okay? That's not what I meant. I'm not– I'm not like you, my Marks are fine. I just don't like showing them to people, okay?"

Percy watches her for a long moment. He doesn't buy it for a _minute_ , Annabeth sees it on his face. But thankfully, he doesn't push. Even if her Marks aren't mutant and freakish like his, at least he seems to have some respect when it comes to pushing about them.

She supposes she does forget that he only has six Marks sometimes. It's obvious at times, like when he doesn't meet her eyes in conversations and only murmurs to Piper and Grover whenever someone new is around, but when he's like _this_ , when he's catching fire from her sparks, it's hard to remember he's shy Jackson with the plain skin. If anyone knows Mark-based discrimination, it would be him.

"You still owe me one more question," he says quietly.

"Last one."

"Why didn't you stay at Piper's for dinner last week?"

She's practiced this one. "I don't like macaroni."

"You didn't even say goodbye."

"I didn't think I had to."

"Piper was sad, you know. That you didn't stay."

"Pull the other one, Jackson, it's got bells on."

"She was. I don't really know why, either, but she was. She looked all slumped."

"Maybe you should get better at reading people."

Percy ignores her. "You should have," he says. "Stayed, I mean."

"Last time I overstayed my welcome I sent you out in tears, Jackson."

Percy purposely ignores the last part of the sentence. "You wouldn't have overstayed your welcome."

"Bloody hell, you must be dafter than I thought. Listen, okay? Piper doesn't like me. Neither do you. You guys wouldn't have wanted me around for dinner, so I did you a favour and left."

Percy doesn't deny any of it, and even though Annabeth had put it in the open it still stings. "You make it like that," he says in a quiet voice. Not afraid. Just shy. "You could be likeable if you wanted to."

"Yeah, as a bed of nails."

"See, you made a joke. That's likeable."

Annabeth sighs. "Stop– stop being so _nice_ to me. I literally called you pathetic and useless and made you cry, why are you being so _nice_?"

Percy shuffles from foot to foot. "I don't like upsetting people."

Underwood must have rubbed off on him. That's a remarkably hippie thing to say. Unimpressed, she asks, "Even me?"

"Even you. I don't want you to feel like how I felt yesterday, even if you really deserved it. Which you do."

Annabeth can't respond. Suddenly she sees the appeal, and feels the twang of a rusty heartstring, as she realises what she's been missing out while she built her empire of fear and frost, what friendships she missed out on building instead. In an alternate universe, somewhere, somehow, she's friends with people like Percy Jackson, best friends, and he forgives her even when she calls him names because he cares about she feels.

Instead, she swallows everything she wants to say and instead nods jerkily. "Oh."

"You're still awful," Percy says. "There are a lot of things you need to own up to if you want to make anywhere near a start with apologies. But I figured being rude was just going to make it all worse."

"Cute."

Percy gives her a look. "You see what I mean?"

"You couldn't possibly tell me something as cheesy as that and expect me not to say something."

"It is true, though," Percy says. "Like, you can apologise to Piper."

"Piper is the last person I'll apologise to."

"She should've been the first. You've been the worst to her."

"What about how she's treated _me_?"

"Unlike you, she has a limit and she knows when to shut up. She invited you to stay for dinner. The least you can say is just a 'sorry'."

Annabeth scowls.

Percy shrugs a little. "Just a thought. I've got to be off – Thalia's waving at me. I accept your apology, though."

"Thanks."

Percy gives her a small smile and starts to head off. However, a thought strikes Annabeth as she stares at his retreating back, and it hits her so hard she can't help but call, "Percy?"

He turns around.

"Why–" She pauses. "Why _did_ Piper invite me for dinner?"

Percy shrugs. "I don't know."

"You wouldn't have wanted me there."

"I didn't really have much reason to."

Fair enough.

"You didn't say anything, though."

"I didn't want to pressure you. If Piper wanted you then obviously there was a deeper reason beyond humiliating you at the table or whatever."

Annabeth stares at him in wonder.

 _This boy._

Distantly, she hears Thalia Grace shout, "Percy!" across the canteen, and Percy shrugs a little and turns away, not bidding her goodbye. He doesn't really need to, because this is the first civil conversation they've ever had and Annabeth doubts they'll have any more, and frankly she isn't that bothered by the lack of farewell and more the fact that Percy Jackson is a bloody enigma of a teenage boy.

He can't look at her in the eye and yet he's the only other person aside from Piper who can stand his ground.

Annabeth feels her world begin to shake and she's not sure how she feels about it.

* * *

This doesn't feel like one of their normal fights.

Annabeth knows how their normal fights play out. Athena yells about how Frederick is an irresponsible parent and Frederick shouts _oh that's rich coming from you_ and then Athena defends her hideous parenting skills by explaining that the reason Annabeth only sees her once every six months is because of work and not because she hates having a disappointment for a daughter and Frederick says something like at least he's _here_ for her and not halfway across the country and yadda yadda yadda. It's all a big melodramatic act by now. It used to scare Annabeth, but she's grown up now and they haven't and even they may be older and Athena may be one of the most powerful businesswomen in the country Annabeth knows she's smarter than they will ever be.

But this time it doesn't play out like that.

Annabeth doesn't even hear them. She's on her bed, typing up an essay on her laptop, when she suddenly hears voices in the corridor and a sharp staccato of heels on the floorboards, and then her door flings open. Frederick is standing in the hallway and Athena is in the doorway, in a blue blouse with her dark hair curled to perfection and her grey eyes glinting.

Annabeth took those eyes. But she also took Frederick's hair. Athena has never said so but Annabeth knows her blonde hair bothers her. She wants Annabeth to be like her. Annabeth is the only person holding her to Frederick. She has shed him like a coat in every way except her daughter, and that's why she knows no matter how many As she scores and how many trophies she wins she'll never be good enough.

It's the dangers of the soulmate system. Annabeth isn't stupid enough to let it jade her vision of it – her parents are idiots. But she's wary. Because once upon a time her mother was as clever as her and now the struggle of pulling herself out of love has dulled her brain.

"Annabeth," Athena says sharply. "Pack your things."

"You can't do this, Athena," Frederick says from behind her.

"I can do whatever I want. Pack your bags, Annabeth."

Annabeth doesn't look up from her laptop. "Where am I going?"

"You're coming with me. I'm not letting you live in this house any longer."

That stops her in her traces. She sits up, bewildered, and stares at both of her parents. They're standing a good five feet apart. "I'm _sorry_?"

"You see?" Frederick says angrily. "She doesn't want to leave."

"That decision is not up to you, Frederick," Athena snaps. "Annabeth, come on, our flight leaves in an hour."

Annabeth stares at her. "You want me to _leave_?"

"I've got an apartment in California. There's a good private school there, very smart, very proper. You'll be in good hands there."

"I don't want to go to California!"

"Of course you do, don't be ridiculous," Athena says. "Now come _on_ , Annabeth, start packing."

"No! What's wrong with Pennsylvania?"

"I'm not leaving you in the care of this man any longer," Athena says. "It's a damaging environment for you and I refuse to let you grow up in a house where your father is rarely around."

"And you think I'll be any happier in California?" Annabeth says defiantly. "I see you maximum five times a year! You'll be around less than Dad!"

"A girl needs her mother to grow up!" Athena says. Her voice is slowly getting louder.

"I've done a pretty good job so far!" Annabeth cries. "You keep crapping all over Dad for being a bad parent and you haven't even looked at yourself! Do you really think that I'll be better off in a new state in a new house in a new school with a mom who's barely ever around?"

"Look at you, Annabeth!" Athena shouts back, and Annabeth steps backwards. One thing Athena has always had the upper hand in yelling. She's louder and more powerful than everyone in the room. "You have hundreds of Marks and they are all _grey_! You think that's a 'good job'?"

"Last year your Mark nearly disappeared!"

"Don't yell at me, I am your mother!"

"Could have fooled me!"

"You're _heartless_ , Annabeth!" Athena yells. "Do you even have a single _friend_? Every Mark on your body except ours is _grey_. Your father may have been around more but he sure as hell didn't teach you how to love!"

"And whose fault is _that_?" Annabeth challenges. "If it wasn't Dad's job that means it was _yours_ , you lousy _cow_ , and _look_ at you, you _failed_. You're right, I don't have a single friend, and that's your fault because you never taught me how!" Athena opens her mouth but Annabeth beats her to it. "The only thing you ever taught me was how to be the best and how to make people fear me. I have a whole legion of kids at school who follow my every command because I _terrify_ them, and you're blaming _Dad_ for my lack of friends?" Annabeth laughs mirthlessly. "Right."

Athena falters. "I..."

She has nothing to say. The apple never falls far from the tree, after all. If Athena thinks that she has the upper hand she's wrong. One thing her glaring absence has taught Annabeth is to never show weaknesses and instead to pinpoint the target's, and Athena wears her heart on her sleeve.

Annabeth shakes head and climbs off her head. She grabs a rucksack from the floor and starts moving around her room, shoving clothes into it. "Whatever. I'm not doing this anymore."

"Where are you going?" Frederick asks. His voice is small.

"Away," Annabeth says. She zips up her bag and turns to face both her parents. Athena is a cracking machine and Frederick is gnawing on his thumbnail. "You both think the other is a terrible parent," she says. "So let's see how I survive without both of you for a while."

"Annabeth–" Frederick tries desperately.

"I'll come back," she says. "Just not now." She looks at Athena. "You can sell your spare ticket to California. I'm not going."

"You can't leave," Frederick says. He sounds near tears, run ragged. "You're only a little girl, what if you get hurt–"

"I'll be safe," she says. "I know a place." She smiles wryly. "And I'm not a little girl. Haven't been for a while." She shoulders her rucksack and pushes through, between both of them. "If you had been paying attention you'd know."

She's out the door before any of them can stop them.

The world outside is too colourful and Annabeth is momentarily dazzled by the bright sunshine. It doesn't stop her from running, though. She knows neither of her parents will follow her – Athena has a plane to catch and she obviously doesn't care enough to chase her down, and Frederick knows better – but she still sprints as fast as she can down the road. She needs to get out.

That place suffocated her and until she's out of everything familiar it will keep snaking after her, so she runs.

Truth be told, she doesn't actually know a place. Rather, she _hopes_ for a place, because she has an idea in mind, but she knows that she has done nothing to warrant this person lending her a room for a couple of months. In fact, it's a bit of the opposite. She thinks she's done enough to certify herself _not_ getting a room.

But she had to get out of that house.

She pulls her phone out of her back pocket and dials a number. Crossing her fingers, she presses it to her ear.

It rings three times before someone picks up.

"Annabeth?"

Annabeth fidgets with her bag strap. "Piper? Can I ask you a massive favour?"

* * *

Piper's estate is _massive_.

This isn't the first time Annabeth has been to her house, so it's nothing she hasn't seen before, but she remembers the first time she did. By the way Piper dressed, she had expected a ratty apartment covered in stripy throws and artsy oil paintings that you can feel the paint strokes on if you trace your fingers over. She had definitely not expected huge ivory gates, acres of grass so green it didn't look real and actual _lion statues_ by the door.

 _Lion statues._

Annabeth remembers being awestruck. Her family isn't poor by definition – her mother is a businesswoman and her father is a historian – so they live quite a modest life, in a two-storey house with an okay-ish TV and an oven that only breaks sometimes, and because their school is in no way posh she hadn't expected anyone else to be that much better. If she had known Piper's family was rolling she probably would have been a lot nicer.

But today, she just feels sick. This is going to be her home for the next however many months and she's going to be living in a mansion with lion statues and marble counters and crystal chandeliers and every day she's going to wake up in a luxurious bed and be reminded of her crappy living situation. She's grateful, don't get her wrong, but she wishes that Athena had never put her in this position.

Tentatively, she approaches the massive ebony doors and raps on the wood.

Almost immediately, the door swings open. From the darkness of the hallway, a voice booms, "Annabeth Chase. I've been expecting you."

Annabeth can't help herself. "How did you know it was me?"

"Oh, I didn't." Piper reveals herself from around the doorframe, smiling at her chirpily. She's wearing a pair of stripy socks and a grey sweatshirt and she's sucking at an ice-lolly, and somehow she manages to look six years old and like a professional model at the same time. "I've been opening the door like that and going 'Annabeth Chase' all spooky for the past half an hour, I think. I'm pretty sure I've scared half my street."

Annabeth isn't quite sure if she's joking. Piper's humour has always been a little too dry to properly tell whether or not she's being sarcastic.

She shifts uncomfortably on the doorstep. "Well. It's me."

"And thank goodness for that." Piper beams at her, her eyes glittering mischievously. "I thought you were going to end up flaking on me."

"Why would I do that?"

"Your sarcasm is endearing, considering you've just been kicked out," Piper says. "Now, come in, I've got to show you around. Pull in your bags."

She doesn't offer to help with Annabeth's suitcases. Annabeth is hardly surprised, and instead grabs the biggest one and pulls it over the doorjamb.

Piper's house is absolutely massive. She's always known this, because this shockingly isn't the first time she's been here, but it still always takes her by surprise. Looking at Piper, you wouldn't be able to tell that every room has a massive glass chandelier in it. Piper is all scuffed trainers and choppy hair and stained denim jackets, and this house is– well. The opposite. In house form.

Piper leads her up a set of stairs. She doesn't turn to help Annabeth with her bag so Annabeth is left to struggle up them with her suitcase, as if she needed any more breath knocked out of her. Even a little help would be appreciated. She's been walking for two hours.

Not that Piper knows that. Annabeth grits her teeth and hauls her suitcase up another step. If she told her that, Piper would help, but she doesn't need any more sympathy. Not from McLean.

That's beyond humiliating.

"This is my bedroom," Piper says, pushing open a door. Just as Annabeth had predicted, it's an explosion of colour and indie band posters. "I'm not sure how long you plan to stay here – take your time, honestly, if you want to stay here until graduation feel free – but for tonight you can sleep in here with me so I can wash all the sheets in the guest room."

Annabeth suddenly feels very awkward. "Oh– you don't have to do that."

"Um, yes I do. We are going to be living in very close proximity to each other for a while and I am not getting fleas because you decided to skip out on hygiene." Piper throws herself down on her bed. "You can dump your bags down there. We'll move everything in the guest room properly tomorrow."

"Thanks."

"No problem." Piper leans against the headboard and fixes Annabeth with her glittery eyes. "So."

Annabeth already knows where this is going. "Not now, McLean. I'm really not in the mood."

Piper doesn't relent. Her eyes are as soft and colourful as kids' marshmallows but they can be powerful sometimes, and Annabeth hates that she can only look into them for a few moments before she starts to spill.

"Please, Piper."

"I'm letting you stay in my house."

"I'll tell you eventually, I promise. Just– not now."

Piper quirks an eyebrow.

Annabeth sighs and scrubs a hand over her face. "Oh my God, fine, okay. Mom and Dad hate each other, right? I live with my dad and Mom is god-knows-where – last time I checked it was Atlanta, but now I'm pretty sure it's California – and, like, every two months she comes and visits to remind me that I'm still a disappointment and a disgrace to the family, et cetera, et cetera, you know, your average dose of mommy love. Then today she came in and told me to pack my bags because she wanted to ship me off to California with her – something about Dad being a 'bad influence' on my upbringing, as if she too were not a trashbag – and then she and dad started fighting because mentally they're both six years old, so I got sick of it and left."

Piper sits there for a while. Surprisingly, she doesn't look sympathetic, which Annabeth is actually a little pleased about. Sympathy is good when it's from the right people with the right intentions, and Piper is really neither of those things, but the way she's still looking at Annabeth like she's Annabeth and not Annabeth With The Crappy Parents And Tragic Backstory lifts something off Annabeth's chest.

People have a tendency to treat her like glass when she shares. It's why she's stopped. But Piper looks almost unimpressed, and while on the surface Annabeth considers that quite rude deep down she's relieved because she knows if anyone's going to keep treating her like Annabeth Chase it's going to be Piper.

"Well," Piper says finally, breaking the silence. "I suppose this was the karma."

Annabeth snorts wetly. "You think?"

"I mean, I'm not laughing, so it's not what I would consider 'sweet revenge'. Quite the opposite, actually." She pauses. "I do feel like a right old arsehole now."

"Good."

"I'm sorry."

"S'not your fault."

"Still."

"You offered me a place to stay. You've done more than enough."

"About that." Piper arranges herself on the bed, and then pats down on the duvet next to her to imply that Annabeth can sit down. "Why'd you even ask me?"

"I think we both know that I haven't really got any other friends to ask, McLean."

"Ah, right." She rolls onto her stomach and kicks up her legs, crossing her ankles in the air and pulling a funny face. "So. You consider me a friend, huh?"

"I never said that."

"I knew it." Piper kicks her legs excitedly. "I am Annabeth Chase's first _friend_."

"You're an acquaintance at most. Your Mark hasn't turned yellow."

"Yet."

"Don't flatter yourself."

Piper squeaks happily and rolls off her bed, clasping her hands. Annabeth can't help but roll her eyes. Piper is a bit of a whirlwind at times, and in her baggy clothing she definitely looks more like a little kid than a model right now. That is, until she struts towards the door, and Annabeth has suddenly never been so confused as to how she can make socks that revolting look gorgeous.

Whatever. It's Piper McLean, she can probably also fly.

"I'll show where you'll be sleeping," Piper says. "Come on, it's just down the hall."

Annabeth follows her out the door. The hallway unnerves her a little – it's mainly just various portraits of a woman Annabeth is pretty sure she recognises as her mother from different modelling shoots. In one she's relaxing in a pool, in another she's posing in a garden with two conveniently placed fig leaves, and in another she's talking on an old telephone with her hair curled like Marilyn Monroe.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to them," Piper says. "There's, like, a new one up every month." She reaches a door and nudges it open with her hip, stepping in. "But anyway, here is where you shall be staying. Customise it any way you want, I don't really care."

"Oh." Annabeth suddenly feels very awkward. "No, that's– all right."

"Honest, Annabeth, we've got about eighteen guest rooms as well as six more spare bedrooms, and it's just me and Mom and sometimes Dad and a long-lost stepsister I've never met before. We won't miss any of these. Design it to your little heart's content."

Annabeth smiles tightly. "Thanks."

Piper flops down on the bed. "The bathroom's down the hall, and you know where my bedroom is, in case you get scared during the night and need a cuddle."

"A cuddle?"

"A good snuggle is always good for the soul. I've been told I'm a great hugger."

"I'm not a fan of human contact."

"Unsurprisingly, I kind of knew you would say that. Not to worry, I'll make you a believer. I'm very convincing, did you know? I actually got Thalia into Taylor Swift."

Annabeth isn't sure why this is a big deal but she nods seriously like it is. "Truly an effort."

"You mock me, but it was. Thalia only listens to music about, like, about killing dreams and stepping on puppies or whatever, so even getting her into recent Taylor was hard. God knows how I managed to get her into country Taylor."

Annabeth nods, a little awkward.

"Speaking of which, actually," Piper says, "I think we need to set some ground rules."

"Ground rules?"

"Come sit." Piper pats the bed next to her. Annabeth does. "Now. We are both aware that you do not have many friends. Any, actually."

"What is your point?"

"Well, I was thinking now is the time you can start to make them."

Annabeth gives her a look. "If you're suggesting what I think you're suggesting–"

"You're staying in my house now," Piper says. "It's only necessary that you get along with my friends."

"I don't make you get along with my friends."

"That's because you don't really have any."

"Listen, McLean, okay? Just because I'm staying here doesn't mean that we're now besties. Your friends _despise_ me."

"And with good reason, too," Piper consoles. "But you can change! All you have to do is not be as prickly. Loosen up! Smile a bit!"

"Has it ever occurred to you that maybe I don't _want_ to be friends with your friends?"

"Of course it has. But I feel like it'll be good for you." Piper looks at her imploringly in the eyes. "Listen, Annabeth. I know we got off on the wrong foot, and by got off on the wrong foot I mean we hated each other for a good three years. But bygones are bygones now, and I think we've grown up. It's senior year. We can't keep this petty feud up forever. Besides. You're literally going to be living with me for a while. That's bound to do _something_ to our relationship."

"I'd hope not."

"See, that's the spirit." Piper holds out her hand. "So? Friends?"

Annabeth stares at her outstretched for a long time. "I just don't understand why," she says, after a very long pause. "Why me? Why now? We've had so long. Yesterday we were still fighting."

"You're lonely, Annabeth," Piper says. The mood has sobered. "That's why. It's why I invited you for dinner. You never really thought I hated you, did I? I just didn't like you because you were so set on being rude to me and all my friends, and I wasn't going to stand for it so I stood my ground. You're lonely and hurting and now you're especially vulnerable because you're temporarily sans parents and you need friends, and because I'm the only person who can put up with your crap I decided to step in."

"I'm not a charity case."

"I'm not saying that. I'm just trying to get you back on your feet."

"I don't need _help_ , Piper. Why don't you just get that?"

"Because out of everyone you could have called you called me. _Me_ , Annabeth. You have so many girls who are in awe of you that you could have called, girls who are much closer to you than I am, and yet you chose me because I know you better than any of those girls. And I'm, like, the _rival_ in this equation. What kind of life is it that your relationships are all so isolated your worst enemy knows the most about you?"

"To be fair, that wasn't exactly my choice."

"That's true, but you catch my drift. You do need help, Annabeth, even if it's only a little bit. You built your, like, castle of ice, and it's beginning to melt. You're going to have two steady feet on the ground if you want to survive that."

"I've kept it secret for so long. They won't find out."

"I wouldn't be so sure. I try to avoid you at the best of times and yet I still managed to catch you with your arms and legs exposed. Those girls are, like, glued to you. They're going to find out one way or another. Just let me be your friend, Annabeth. Please. I won't even make you cuddle with me or paint my toenails."

Annabeth sighs. As much as she hates to admit it, Piper is right – about everything. Those girls are one day going to find out that their Marks aren't yellow at all but grey, and they're going to turn. Their entire thing is "best friends forever". Annabeth has been invited to the sleepovers, she knows the drill. Once they find out she's never really had a genuine feeling towards any of them the entire time she's done for.

She will need someone to fall back on, someone stable. And no one is more stable than Piper McLean and her melting pot of cronies with questionable hair.

"Acquaintances," she says finally.

Piper beams. "I can do that."

"You're not a yellow Mark yet."

"I will be soon." Piper quickly sobers. "But before we make this official, one thing."

"What?"

"This feud? Ends here. We're not being nasty to each other any more. No more. Any more racism and that's it. I will not take that any more."

"You never had a problem with it before."

She isn't trying to defend herself. She's asking a question.

"We're friends now. Friends don't do that."

 _She should've been the first. You've been the worst to her._

"I'm sorry about that," Annabeth says quietly. "I shouldn't have said– any of it."

"Well, that's a start." Piper gives her a funny little sideways smile, her eyes sparkling. "No more, though, okay? That's not even a friendship thing. Rules of the house. Racist, and I chuck you out."

"I promise."

"Good."

It's not perfect, but it's a start. Piper was nice enough to offer Annabeth her home, when Annabeth has been nothing but disgusting to her. You don't get opportunities like this every day, especially not from your arch enemy. She can suck it up and behave. She knows she can.

It's a start, at least.

* * *

"Hey guys!" Piper says pleasantly, sitting down. Percy looks up to greet her and then freezes when he quite readily realises she isn't alone.

Everyone else appears to have a similar thought. They all stare at her as she cheerfully sinks down in her seat with her– _accomplice_ in tow and steals a fry from Jason's tray, as if this isn't the weirdest thing that has ever happened.

For a solid ten seconds, no one speaks.

And then Thalia asks, in a slow, controlled voice, "What is _she_ doing here?"

"Oh!" Piper says. "This is Annabeth. She's joining us for today. And maybe the rest of the week, depending on how much blood gets spilt."

And sure enough, it is. She looks like regular old Annabeth Chase – straight hair, falling behind her shoulders like a long blonde cape, in sensible clothes that cover enough of her to not have a single Mark in sight but not enough to make her seem like a nun. Somehow, in her long-sleeved cardigan and pristine jeans, she manages to look more attractive than any girl Percy has seen with their boobs out.

Normally, she could never look out of place, because this school is her kingdom and she reigns with a frosty sceptre, but here at the table she has never looked so peculiar. She just doesn't fit in here. They're the odd ones out, so to speak, because you've got people like Jason Grace and people like, well, Percy, sitting within inches of each other. And then here comes Annabeth Chase, with her pastel sweaters and ice-cold eyes, and she sticks out like a sore thumb.

Annabeth seems to feel his gaze on her and she looks at him. Percy glances away quickly.

Thalia blinks. "And why the _hell_ , may I ask?"

"Thalia," Percy says, sighing.

"Don't, Jackson. You can sigh at me all you want. I'm not sitting at a table with her."

"And what makes you think I ever wanted to sit a table with you either?" Annabeth asks innocently. Her eyes are freezing and impassive.

Thalia stands up. "All right, _listen_ , Chase–"

"Thalia," Piper barks. "Sit down."

"No, Piper!" Thalia holds out her arms. "I'm not going to sit here and play nice with the same girl who has been tormenting you for the past three years!"

"The past is the past. We've made up, it's all good."

"Uh, no it's not? Do I need to give you a run-down of all the crap she's _said_ to you?"

"She changed, Thalia! People do that, you know!"

" _She's_ also right here," Annabeth quips drily.

Thalia's eyes narrow. She stabs a finger at her. "Don't test me, Chase."

"Ooh, frightening."

"Right, that's it." Thalia pushes up her sleeves and Percy is almost certain she's about to leap across the table and drag Annabeth to the floor by the hair. She looks like she wants to, in any case. Annabeth is undeterred, however, and she stands up too, staring her dead in the eyes.

Percy can feel their Marks on each other form. He knows it'll be a long time, if ever, before they turn yellow.

"Guys–" Grover tries.

"Shut _up_ , Grover," Thalia snarls. She leans forward. Her hand almost goes straight in Percy's burger. "I don't know what spell you've put Piper under but I'm not falling for it, okay? You're a piece of crap and you always have been. You treat her like absolute garbage for years, and then you waltz in here like you own the place and expect us to treat you nicely because what, you've managed to convince Piper you've changed? Please. As if Annabeth Chase will ever feel a single flicker of emotion towards anyone except herself."

Annabeth's eyes flash. "You talk a big game for a coward, Grace."

"Oh, _I'm_ the coward?"

Annabeth studies her for a few moments and suddenly Percy knows what's going to happen. He feels a balloon inflate with poison in his chest. "Guys, come on–"

"What would your precious daddy say if he heard you speak like that?" she says coolly, and Thalia suddenly flinches like she's been struck across the face. Jason also stands up. The air has turned electric. Percy can feel it stain his throat, rancid and biting. He hates fighting, he hates arguments. He doesn't want to be here. "I'm sure he wouldn't be very pleased with you."

"That's enough, Annabeth," Jason says firmly.

Annabeth turns to him, like she's only just realised he's there. "Oh, Jason. Standing up for your freakazoid of a sister? That's honestly adorable. Should have always known, though. If you went for someone like Piper your standards were always going to be low."

"Annabeth!" Piper shouts.

The atmosphere breaks. Percy feels like he can breathe. Piper stands up as well. Nico ducks behind his pasta.

"Remember what I said, Chase," Piper says in a hard voice. "We don't do that anymore, all right? That was the deal. I let you stay, you shut your _trap_."

Percy doesn't know what this deal is but Annabeth seems to take a step back.

"I want this to work," Piper continues. "I really do, but it isn't going to go anywhere if all of you keep acting like absolute children. We're trying to bond here, form new friendships and whatnot. We're not trying to break them apart."

"Your friend here just appears to have that endearing quality about her," Thalia snaps.

"Sounds familiar," Annabeth mutters.

Thalia's eyes harden.

"Come on, Piper," Jason tries. "You can't expect us to like her, especially after all that she's done to you! She's literally been racist towards you, and you're just okay with that?"

"Yes," Piper says in a firm voice. "We're adults, we made up. Well. I'm an adult, in any case. You differentiate every now and then."

Jason stares at her. "She literally just insulted you a second ago!"

"It's part of her charming personality."

"What, making _fun_ of you?"

"Absolutely. She's as prickly as a hedgehog, it's quite adorable."

"And you're just okay with that?"

"I love you, Jason, but you don't have to save me every time. You're my boyfriend, not my bodyguard. I know how to fight my own battles. Annabeth is no threat, I promise you."

Jason stares at her for several more seconds before he blinks in disbelief and sinks back down into his seat. "All right, whatever," he mumbles, seemingly half to himself. "Not a problem at all, just making friends with your local racists."

"Jason," Piper says in a warning voice.

"I'll _drop_ it, whatever."

Thalia seems harder to sway. She doesn't look convinced at all. "This can't be real," she says incredulously. "You can't be _serious_ , Piper!"

"I've never been more serious in my life."

Thalia flounders. Pathetically, she turns to Percy, her eyes desperate. "Percy?"

Percy lifts a shoulder. "She's– not that bad, Thalia."

Annabeth doesn't smile but something in her eyes thaws.

"You're kidding," Thalia says in disbelief. "You're kidding, Percy, _look_ at me, this is _Annabeth Chase_. She's done stuff to you too! Why are you okay with this?"

"She apologised."

"Sorry is just a _word_ , Percy!"

"And she's just a girl," Percy says softly. Annabeth flinches like she's been struck between the eyes. "We made up. It's okay."

Thalia seems stumped. " _Unbelievable_." She frowns at Annabeth. "You even have Percy under your spell. What _are_ you?"

"You heard the boy," Annabeth says, a little wryly. "Just a girl."

Thalia doesn't appear to know what to do. Percy will admit, it's a little funny – Annabeth is like a stone and Thalia is like a firecracker. She'll initially cause more damage but she burns out quickly, and then Annabeth will stand, unwavering, firm. Percy admires that, almost. Percy's got Thalia all figured out, because she's a whirlwind with a heart of gold who loves fiercely, and he loves her because of it, but Annabeth is fascinating, always has been, because she _shifts_.

Most people you can pin like butterflies to a corkboard. Annabeth is like trying to catch mist in a jar.

He glances down at her hands. She had pulled her sleeves all the way up to her knuckles, but they've slipped upwards a little, and Percy catches sight of the backs of her hands, covered in Marks – all grey.

She catches him looking and yanks them right back down.

Grey Marks aren't uncommon. The vast majority of people have more grey Marks than they do any other colour, because they'll make eye contact with hundreds of strangers on public transport. It's just the way things work. Percy wonders why Annabeth covered them.

It's stupid to be ashamed of your grey Marks. They're what make you normal. A lot of people Percy knows have only five yellow Marks, like him, or sometimes even less, but because they're covered in grey Marks they're fine.

The gears in his head start to turn.

Thalia stares at Annabeth for a few more moments, before, defeated, she drops back in her seat. "Okay, then," she mutters. "Whatever. It's not like this is super weird or anything."

Annabeth sits back down too. She looks triumphant, almost, but she masks it with an expression of calm. Piper, on the other hand, seems utterly ecstatic.

"Well," she says, looking a little smug. "That took a lot less convincing than I thought it would."

Thalia _hmphs_ , displeased.

"I'm still not happy," Jason says.

"Live a little, man," Nico tells him. "Piper seems happy. Besides. Like Percy said, she's just a girl."

Annabeth rolls her eyes. Thalia notices and seethes a little.

"Yeah," Piper reaffirms. "She's harmless. She's like a cactus, you know – prickly and irritating on the outside, but soft and mushy on the inside. I haven't yet cracked down to that part yet but I will, mark my words."

"I _am_ here, you know," Annabeth mutters, picking up her sandwich. "You can say my name. I won't curse your firstborn or whatever."

Grover stares at her. "You just made a joke."

"Oh shock, I have a sense of humour."

"I didn't mean it like that," Grover says timidly. "I just meant– you know. Your sense of humour has always seemed like it centred around kicking puppies and feasting on your enemies' livers and stuff, you know."

Nico drops his head into his hand. "Stop talking, please."

Annabeth actually looks like she's about to crack a smile. She's got a pretty smile, Percy realises. She should do it more often. "Sorry to burst your bubble."

"I can't believe he's siding with the _enemy_ ," Thalia mutters viciously. She stabs her straw through her Capri Sun with extra vigour as if to emphasis her point. "Unbelievable."

"She's not the enemy."

"So everyone's been saying." Thalia eyes her. "I don't trust her."

"I can hear you," Annabeth says.

"Good."

Annabeth raises her eyebrows and watches her with an icy stare for a few moments, before shrugging and turning back to her drink. She's never looked so small. Percy looks at her from where she's sat next to Piper. She normally has all the dominance in a room, has all the power, but here she doesn't, and she must realise it. At first she thought she did, because everyone listened to her and feared her, but now that the table has lapsed into (mostly) comfortable conversation she's got nothing to except stare down her milkshake straw.

Percy isn't sure what to feel about that. He picks at his burger.

"So," Piper says brightly. "Jason, how was football practice?"

Percy can't help but snort. "Subtle."

Piper flicks a paper towel at him.

Jason rolls his eyes fondly but he takes the bait because he's a good boyfriend. Percy should get him a mug or something. "Uh, it was good," he says. "We've just recruited Frank Zhang as linebacker and he's built like a horse so this season should be cool."

"Did you finally let Leo Valdez on the team?" Nico asks, amused.

Jason sighs. "Two years, and he still won't take the hint."

"You have to admire his persistence," Nico says. "You'd think he believes he actually has a chance."

"Well, of course. It's why he attends tryouts every year. I recommended cheerleading this time."

Thalia chokes on her drink. "Are you _serious_?"

"It's not a bad idea. He's got a lot of energy and clearly a lot of school spirit if he keeps trying out every year."

"He only wants to get on the team because it scores him chicks." Thalia takes another sip of her juice. "It's like he's oblivious to the fact that he could literally make an international team and girls would still stay far away."

"Can he even dance?" Percy asks.

"Probably not," Jason says. "He's got the coordination of a three-legged moose. At tryouts yesterday there was a slight breeze and he actually fell over. I doubt he'd be any better at cheerleading then he is at football."

"Can you imagine him on top of the pyramid, though?" Thalia asks, snorting. "There'd be a slight gust of wind and he'd float down like a balloon."

"At least cheerleading will get him off my case," Jason says. He swirls his salad around ("listen, okay, it's football season, I have to start bulking up" "whatever you say, Jase") and then spears a tomato with his fork, studying it like it's the most fascinating thing he's ever seen. "I've passed him onto Calypso now, so she can deal with him."

"I can't believe he even agreed," Nico mutters.

"Like I said," Thalia says. "Chicks. Calypso is one of the prettiest girls in the whole school. Football team would only increase his chances of getting a girl by about twenty percent. Cheerleading means he has direct access to them."

"You make them sound like they're cattle," Grover says dryly.

"Listen, goat boy, as long as it has boobs and a pulse Leo Valdez is all over it."

Percy laughs. He catches glimpse of Annabeth almost smiling, too, but when she sees him looking she controls it and scowls at him.

Well, then.

He suppresses a smile of his own. She's like an irritable puppy. It's funny, now that her friends holding up throne don't surround her, she's really not that intimidating at all. In fact, if Percy was a stranger looking in, he would almost think of her face as _soft_. She's got rounded cheeks and soft hair and freckles across her nose, and when she thinks Percy isn't looking she has a smile on her face that makes her seem almost– gentle.

Gentle. Percy almost snorts. Annabeth is all sharp edges and cold looks. She is _far_ from gentle.

Thalia sips her shake. "What are you smirking about over there, Jackson?"

"Your face."

She blows the remnants of her drink out of her straw at him. He squawks indignantly.

"Hey!"

"You deserved it, you rat."

He contemplates throwing his burger at her. However, before he can, the bell rings, and he almost leaps in surprise. That was fast.

Thalia was, quite literally saved by the bell. Dairy reeks something awful when it stains your clothes, and they've still got two more hours left of school.

Jason pushes his chair back and stands up. He looks very football-captain-y, standing above them all like that. It's rather intimidating. "Well," he says. "Best be off then, I've got a Biology test next period. Percy, fill me with your wisdom."

Percy laughs a little, but he knows it's the wrong thing to say. The only other person who really notices is Piper. She slides her eyes to Annabeth, who is staring coolly ahead like Jason has never spoken.

But when you're royalty your most fragile possession is your pride, and old habits die hard. She spears a tomato. Her every move is rigid.

No one notices except Percy and Piper. They exchange and a look and Percy kind of feels sick.

They all split off to go to their respective lessons. He and Annabeth have the same next class – English Lit – but she powers ahead like a robot and even Piper doesn't try and stop her. Grover hobbles next to him as far as he can until he has to turn off for Calculus and together they both watch as Annabeth walks ahead, her spine rigid and her legs like stiff joints.

"Who knew," Grover says softly. "Annabeth Chase has a kryptonite."

Percy doesn't really know how to respond, so he waves goodbye and walks after her to class.

* * *

Percy doesn't properly talk to Annabeth for several weeks.

They're around each other a lot, sure. She joins them almost every day, and when she doesn't she's only a couple tables away with a group of girls. She doesn't properly talk to anyone except Piper, really, now that Percy's thinking about it. He thinks it might be an intimidation thing, which is something he never thought he would say about Annabeth, but whenever she joins them for lunch it's like she's got a bubble around herself that she occasionally breaks to mumble something to Piper.

She's always next to them but Percy doesn't think she's ever been so far away.

He will say something, though, and that is that Annabeth and Piper have progressed _tremendously_. Like. It's a little jarring, actually. He's so used to them sniping at each other that when Piper had pressed a cheerful kiss to Annabeth's cheek at the end of the day he almost walked into a table.

(Jason was just as thrilled. "You can't go around kissing Annabeth Chase," he told her firmly. "I'm the only person you're meant to be kissing."

"I'm not kissing Annabeth Chase," Piper says. "I just gave her a little friendship peck."

Jason huffs.)

Also.

He's, like, ninety percent sure they now live with each other.

That's something he can safely say absolutely no one saw coming. First off, he's not even sure how that's meant to work, considering he knows Annabeth has two parents of her own and she clearly owns a house, and secondly they had literally _just_ stopped trashing each other. And now they've already moved in with each other.

 _What about that even makes sense._

They've never said it outright, but Percy connected the dots. Piper is always trying to lace Annabeth into their conversations by bringing up a movie they had apparently watched the night before, and once she had wiggled her fingers in Thalia's face and gloated about how excellent Annabeth was at manicures and had unsuccessfully tried to get her on board ("I do not and never will like Annabeth Chase," Thalia had said. "You have your head on backwards if you think I'm going to let her go anywhere _near_ my nails. She'd probably rip them out while my back was turned."

"Do leave her alone," Piper had said. "She painted mine without any of that."

"That's because you've got a semi-scary football boyfriend who would tear her to shreds if she so much as breathed on you."

"He's also your brother?")

Percy wants to ask, but he always refrains. Piper isn't daft. She wouldn't invite Annabeth to live in her house for the sake of friendship. There's a reason there somewhere, maybe something to do with Annabeth's irrational need to cover every inch of her skin, but because walking that road would be like dancing in a minefield he decides it's best just to leave it alone.

Still.

"You and Annabeth are close," he offers one day.

Piper gives him a cheeky grin. "Jealous?"

"I was just wondering."

"That's not really a phrase up for contemplation."

"I was just wondering why," he says. "Like. Literally _yesterday_ you were both ready to tear each other's eyes out and now you're making bloody friendship bracelets, and I'm just a bit confused."

Piper sighs, but it's not unhappy. It's more thoughtful. She puts down her pen. "I don't know," she says, in a voice that says she really does. "She just looked like she needed someone."

"She was doing quite fine on her own."

"Not really," Piper says. "I decided that my riveting friendship would be enough to fill the void, and thus I stepped in for the job."

"She had everyone petrified of her. She could have picked anyone. Why did you volunteer for it? You hate her."

"I don't hate her," Piper says. "She just got a bit annoying sometimes. Like a fly."

"A fly."

"You've got to try understand her a bit," says Piper. "Not entirely, because she's like a bloody black hole with everything going on, just endless nothingness with the occasional biting remark, and even I don't understand her fully, but just get an overall grasp. She was lonely. She needed me."

"You didn't need her."

"Maybe not," Piper says. "I think in due time I might, though. She's really not that bad."

"Ha ha."

"You scoff, but it's true. You should try talking to her. She's a bit like a crab – snippy on the outside, and an absolute disaster when it comes to retracting the pincers, but when you get on the inside she's all soft and gooey, like a pillow. She likes Indiana Jones, you know. That's common ground."

"I'm not going to go up to her and be like, talk dirty to me, and she'll say Indiana Jones and I'll just marry her. Conversation is rather hard. Especially for me."

"You'll get used to it."

"I'd rather I just get to the soft bit first. Is there a shortcut?"

"Indiana Jones," Piper says promptly. "And vanilla milkshakes."

Of course Annabeth Chase likes vanilla milkshakes.

"See, that's also a bit of a problem."

"She's a girl, not an equation," Piper says. "Just be like, hey, wanna go for milkshakes?"

"We're virtual strangers."

"And you will forever remain that way unless you make a move. It takes two to tango, you know. Second punch starts the fight, and all that jazz. How many times have you guys talked?"

"Like. Three."

"Well, that's good. That's also common ground."

"'Hey, Annabeth, remember that time you made me cry? Let's go for milkshakes.'"

"You're a nightmare, Jackson. This really isn't as hard as you think it'll be. Think of her like me. How easy is it to start conversation with me?"

"That's only because you're my best friend."

"Just go up to her and start talking about memes, or Star Trek, or whatever. She'll dig it, I promise. And then you can go for milkshakes and exchange sob stories and become best friends, the end. You've got the golden moment right in front of you, just _seize_ it!"

"What if I don't want to seize it? There's a reason we haven't spoken until now. She _scares_ me, Piper."

"Don't let her, she's harmless. Did you know she cries at High School Musical?"

"I– did not."

"See, how scary is she now? She's a loser. Just like you. It's practically written in the stars. Nerd meets nerd, the entire shebang."

Percy gnaws at her lower lip. "I don't know."

"She hates strawberry flavoured anything and she's allergic to facepaint and when she thinks I'm not home she likes to wear blue eyeshadow and she wears big fuzzy cardigans and she has those fluffy socks that you also have and she unironically enjoys the Shrek movies. She is literally the _least_ most frightening person on this planet. In fact, some people would argue _you're_ more terrifying."

"The entire school is scared of her."

"And with good reason, too, because she can be a bit frosty, but on the inside she's all yucky and romantic and gross. Don't be scared of her, she's great."

Percy keeps chewing his lip.

"If you don't talk to her, then I'll literally make you. I have before."

"The last time you did that it ended with me in tears."

"Not one of my brightest moments, but hey, at least you both talked. Even if your conversation wasn't the most pleasant. And! You forget that you're the only kid in the school who can unnerve the heebie-jeebies out of her. That has to mean something."

"What, that I'm so used to rejection I can hold a conversation with the scariest person in the whole school?"

"I was thinking more along the lines that it would make your friendship more smooth-sailing, but I suppose that's also half-true."

Percy actually laughs at that. "We'll see," he says.

"Who knows?" Piper says, picking her pen back up. "Maybe you'll even get a Mark out of it."

Percy doesn't know how to respond. He picks up his pen too and stares down at his page until all the words blur together.

* * *

He decides to make his move the following day.

He knows during their free period Annabeth either likes to terrorize the library or sit by herself in the courtyard with her phone, and just by a stroke of luck she happens to do the latter. Grover and Nico are planning to go to an exclusive, invite-only hipster screening of _Pyscho_ and had asked him to come along, but he had just told them he was otherwise occupied. With what, he didn't mention. He's not sure platonically seducing Annabeth Chase would be taken very well.

"Your loss," Nico says, unbothered. "Well, come on, then, goat boy, we don't want to be late."

"I'm still not massively sure how you're planning on pulling this off, Nico," Grover says nervously as they patter off. Percy hears his voice fade out. "I looked it up, it's almost two hours long, and we only have an hour off, this doesn't seem very foolproof..."

Percy smiles fondly as they disappear through the school gates, and then turns his attention to Annabeth Chase, who, right on cue, has appeared at one of the benches in the middle of the courtyard. She's in a pair of jeans and a long-sleeved navy shirt, and even though this is probably the most casual Percy has ever seen her she still looks gorgeous, as usual. She's holding her phone and a bag, and when she sits down on the bench she swings her bag onto the table but doesn't open it, instead opting to keep staring at her phone.

Percy swallows. This is going to be harder than he thought.

 _Come on, Perce. Don't chicken out now._

He sets his shoulders back. He can do this. He can _do_ this.

Slowly, he begins to approach her.

She doesn't notice him until he's standing right in front of her. He awkwardly sways on the balls of his feet, not quite sure he's allowed to go any closer to her without her seeing without it being creepy, and it takes her a few seconds to realise there's a human standing in front of her. She blinks and looks up at him.

It feels weird, being the tall one. Even though he technically always has been.

Metaphorically speaking. Whatever. He's failing English.

"Oh," she says, in a not very thrilled voice. "You're here."

"I am." He clutches his bag and stares firmly at her eyebrows. "I. Have cookies?"

She quirks an eyebrow. "Are you asking me or telling me?"

Percy flounders. "Telling. You. I'm telling you. That's what I'm doing. Telling you. That I have cookies." To stop himself from speaking any more he steps on his own foot and bashfully pulls out the sandwich bag with them in. "They, uh. Have Smarties in them."

Annabeth eyes them, but not suspiciously. "I didn't know you baked."

"I didn't. My, uh, mom. She made them."

That almost gets a smile out of her. She looks at him for a few seconds before saying, "well, are you going to sit down or keep standing there looking gormless?"

She doesn't say it nicely but it's still technically an invitation for him to join her so he hastily stutters out an apology and clambers over the bench so he's sitting opposite her. His hands are shaking, he realises. Internally, he rolls his eyes.

Get it together, Perce. God.

Annabeth eyes him for a few seconds in mild surprise, like she wasn't really expecting him to sit down with her, but she doesn't boot him off, which eases his conscience slightly. After a few moments, she says, "well, let's see these cookies, then."

He pushes the bag into her hand, and she unpeels the seal and takes one out. They're Percy's favourite – white chocolate and Smarties, and then dyed blue, and suddenly he feels sick. Making cookies was a terrible idea. Those YouTube videos on how to make friends were probably a big fat lie. Oh God, what if she doesn't like it? What if she spits it out and hates it, and then hates him, and everything falls to pieces?

His thoughts are cut short when she bites into it. Annabeth doesn't look away from his eyes the entire time, which is slightly unnerving and also very uncomfortable. It takes everything in Percy not to look at her back. Instead, he stares at a point above her head.

She chews, and tilts her head. Then, she says, "these are really nice."

Oh, thank the Lord. Percy tries to sag with relief as subtly as he can.

"Tell your mom," she says. "They're good."

"Thanks," he says. Then his eyes widen. "I mean. On my mom's behalf. Because. She made them and stuff. Not me."

Annabeth's watching him. "Yeah, I got that."

"Right." He pulls at his thumbs, hard. "Sorry."

"You apologise a lot."

"S– I mean. I guess."

She doesn't respond, just watches him, with those startling sterling silver eyes of hers. He feels like a Maths equation under her steely gaze. Then, after what feels like years, she laces her fingers under her chin and says, "so. What may I do for you, Jackson?"

"Huh?"

"Why are you here?"

"Oh." Percy clutches his bag tighter, like a security blanket. He catches Annabeth noticing and loosens his grip, rubbing his sweaty hands down his jeans. Now or never. "Um. Well. I thought we could have a go at being friends."

That catches her severely off guard. She blinks, once, twice. "I'm sorry?"

"Friends," he says. "You know. When two or more people join in union to form a bond of everlasting acquaintanceship–"

"I know what friends are, Jackson," she says snippily. Her voice suddenly is several notes higher than normal, panicky. "I just– I've just never been so directly approached before about it."

Percy beams. Somehow, her unease has given him confidence. It's not every day you floor the most intimidating girl in the whole school. "Well, we're all up for trying new things. Besides, this'll make me stand out amongst all your potential platonic suitors as memorable, so you'll consider me more thoughtfully." He's too busy rifling through his bag to see her involuntarily square up at the end of his phrase. "If you need convincing I've got more cookies. They're chocolate."

Annabeth looks so confused it's almost kind of cute. "You– want to be friends? With me?"

"I mean." Percy pauses and shrugs. "Yeah, I guess."

"Why?"

Out of everything, Percy was not expecting that. "What do you mean?"

"Why the hell are you doing this? Did Piper set you up?"

She sounds angry now. Percy blinks. "Uh..."

"Because if she did, you can tell her to shove her and her unnecessary opinions and invasions of my privacy right up her arse and for her to piss off." Annabeth's properly angry now. She stands up and shoves her phone in her bag, slinging it over her shoulder. "She just needs to butt out, _God_!"

"Um." Percy feels his heartbeat flutter everywhere. "She– didn't?"

Annabeth stops. "What?"

"Piper didn't set me up? I– uh. Don't really know where you'd get that from."

Annabeth stares at him. Her bag swings from her shoulder from how aggressively she had slung it on. All her fire has seemingly seeped out of her. "She– didn't?"

"No." Percy bashfully looks down at his cookies. "I mean. She encouraged me a little. Because I wanted to be friends with you but, uh, as you could probably guess, I'm a little suckish with talking to people and you're scary sometimes– only sometimes, though," he rushes out when he sees her face change. "Apparently you're not actually that bad, though, so it's all good! Piper called you a cactus."

"A cactus."

"Prickly on the outside, all mushy on the inside." Annabeth doesn't look any more pleased so Percy rushes on. "Not that it's a bad thing! I mean. We've all cried at High School Musical, haven't we?"

Annabeth's eye twitches. "Mm."

"She also said you like Indiana Jones. And, uh. I, too, like Indiana Jones. So. I thought it would be, like. A backup plan, in case all other forms of sentence starters failed." Annabeth is still giving him that odd incomprehensible look so he says sheepishly, "I comprised a list. Of conversation starters, I mean, not backup plans. But mentally. Not– not physically, because– um. That would be lame."

Annabeth looks like she's about to laugh, but her eyes are sharp. It's a funny look. It could be considered cruel, but it also could be seen as soft. Percy's not sure.

Maybe this development in their relationship will decide. Only time can tell, he supposes.

Carefully, she slinks back down into her seat. Her eyes are cautious, suspicious. "Where are your friends? Underwood and the emo?"

"Nico," he says almost immediately. "Um. They've gone to see a movie."

"During free period?"

"It's. Exclusive. Part of one of Nico's odd anime clubs. Even though Psycho's not an anime. I think they're doing a vintage thing, to make them more hipster. It's a thing. They did invite me, though. But. I turned it down. As you can tell."

She quirks an eyebrow. "Not a horror fan?"

"I suppose you could say that. But, um. I wanted us to bond as friends, too, and I couldn't really do that if I was watching a movie."

Annabeth doesn't respond. She just keeps watching him.

Percy hates awkward silences. He also hates it when he's been psychoanalyzed by the likes of people like Annabeth Chase but he doesn't mention it and instead breaks a corner off one of the cookies and starts to crumble it in his fingers. He needs to be fidgeting with something most of the time to help with the anxiety. He should invest in a fidget spinner. That would be some sort of help, wouldn't it?

"So," he says. "Um. What do you normally do now?"

Annabeth raises an eyebrow. "Is this your attempt at 'bonding'?"

"Well, you're not providing much conversation so I suppose we have to start at the basics."

"Ooh, touchy." She doesn't sound offended – quite the opposite, she sounds amused. "Well, I'll indulge you, whatever. I do lessons on my phone."

"Lessons? For what?"

"If I told you I'd have to kill you."

"There are cameras everywhere, I'd quite like to see you try." Percy props himself on his elbows. "Really, what are you doing?"

"Nosy."

"Just curious."

Annabeth rolls her eyes and tilts her screen away from him. "You can try this friendship thing out, I'll let you have a go, but this is not the way you win someone's heart."

"It can't be that bad."

"Has anyone told you that you're actually extremely irritating?"

"Several times."

"Go figure."

"What are you doing on your phone, Annabeth Chase?"

"Nothing."

Percy leans up to have a peep. Annabeth scowls at him and tries to switch off her phone before he can see but her fingers miss the button for only a split second, and it's enough for Percy to catch glimpse of her screen.

He sits back, his mouth slightly open. Annabeth shoves her phone in her pocket, two red spots high on her cheeks. He can see in her face that she's praying he didn't see.

But he did. How can he not recognise that screen?

"You have dyslexia?" he asks.

"No."

"But you have Dixic," he says. "That's a dyslexia app."

"And how would _you_ know that, Jackson?"

"I have dyslexia, too," he says honestly. "I use it."

Annabeth pauses. "You have dyslexia?"

"Why are you so ashamed to tell me?"

Annabeth scoffs. "Well, it's not as if I'm proud of it."

"You should be," Percy says. "Well. Not of the dyslexia itself, that sucks, but you're very smart. You should be proud that you've achieved so much."

"You sound like a counsellor."

"But you know what this means," Percy says, ignoring her. "It means we have another thing in common."

"Are you serious?"

"Entirely. Now we have Indiana Jones and dyslexia as mutual– things. That has to count for something, doesn't it?"

"For what, that we have good taste in movies and our brains don't work?"

"It's practically fate, Annabeth. Considering we're polar opposites, we sure do share a lot of interests. I bet we have a lot more in common than we think."

Annabeth rolls her eyes. "Oh, really."

"Piper told me that you very much like vanilla milkshakes. And I am here to tell you that I do too."

"Do you have a life?"

"That's still another thing!"

"Something tells me you don't really believe that."

"Well, that's true," Percy says. "Vanilla milkshakes are vile, and I'm not entirely sure how or why you enjoy them, but because you clearly can't offer up any fascinating conversation motives I'm stuck here struggling and resorting to _lying_ to keep this up."

Annabeth just raises her eyebrow. "I'm not the one who wants to be friends here."

"I was expecting at least a _little_ effort."

Annabeth rolls her eyes at him. She does that a lot. Percy considers the possibility of her one day rolling them out of her head. "Fine. How are you on this good day, Percy Jackson?"

He thinks about it. "I'm– very well, actually. A little chilly, but I'm good for the most part." He pauses. "You?"

"You weren't actually meant to answer that."

"It's the most you've offered all conversation, of course I'm going to take it. And you didn't answer my question."

"I'm good."

"Just– just good?"

"What do you want me to say, Jackson? Spectacular? Mind-blowing? Utterly fabulous?"

"You don't have to be sarcastic. This is a genuine chat we're having here."

"Is it?"

"We've discussed our deep dark tragic pasts, Annabeth. I think that counts." He takes a bite out of the cookie he was crumbling. "Besides, now that we know all the dark bitty crevices of each other, I think we can classify one another as a potential friend."

Annabeth laughs. "Trust me, Jackson, you're just grazing the surface."

"Wait, you actually have a dark tragic past?"

"I mean. _Tragic_ is a bit of a strong word."

Percy's treading dangerous territory here. He should probably shut up, but he's already shoved his hand in the fire. He doesn't see what a difference it will make. "Has it got something to do why you live with Piper?" he asks.

She doesn't freeze, but her posture tightens, like someone has just switched her on. She sighs. "She told you?"

"No. I just figured it out. You're not very subtle, either of you." He pauses. "I'm pretty sure that's even Piper's shirt."

She glances downwards. "Oh."

"Yeah."

She sighs again and starts pulling her cookie apart. Percy looks down at the crumbs on his jeans. Maybe they're more alike than they originally thought. "Just– parent stuff."

"Did they kick you out?"

"It's more like I ran away."

Percy sits up. "You ran away?"

"It's a bit of a long story. If you want the very condensed version, then yeah, I guess."

"Whoa." Percy sits back. "That's. I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything."

"I'm sorry."

"Not your fault."

"I can't believe you ran away." He stares thoughtfully at her hairline. "That's just not something I can imagine you doing."

"Oh, shock horror, I have human emotions and feelings."

"Why?"

"Why do I have human emotions and feelings?"

"Why did you run away?"

She stares at him. "Do you have _any_ tact, Percy Jackson?"

"Most of the time," he says honestly. "But I'm not scared around you."

She opens her mouth, and then stops and closes it. She's got a funny look in her eyes, and she tilts her head. "My parents were fighting," she says finally. Percy knows it's not what she wanted to say, but he doesn't press it. "Neither of them wanted me, it was pretty obvious. Mom was trying to fob me off to California with her and Dad– well, he's only marginally less crappy than she is. I got sick of it, so I packed up and left."

"And you picked Piper?"

She hesitates. "Yes."

"Why? I'm sure you had lots of girls who'd like to stay with you."

"If I hadn't moved in with Piper we wouldn't be here right now, so technically it's my quick thinking that has granted you another friend."

She's trying to change the subject. She's slippery, Annabeth. It's her way of trying to slide her way out of the corner he's got her backed into.

He lets her.

"You did nothing more than be in the right place at the right time," he points out. "You wouldn't have come near me if I hadn't gotten to you first."

"Can you blame me? You're nosy as hell and you just _hover_ everywhere, like a fruit fly."

A week ago, Percy would have been hurt. He's not anymore. "I get that a lot. But I've also been told I've got soft hair and I give good hugs, so I'd say the pros outweigh the cons."

Annabeth takes another cookie and grumbles around it. "What is it with you people and hugs, anyway? It's like if you're not physically touching in one way or another you'll keel over and die."

"It's just a nice thing to do," Percy says. "Don't you ever cuddle with your friends?"

"Not– not really."

"Well, it's a relief I'm your friend now," he tells her. "Don't worry, I'll make up for all your years of solitude."

She smiles uncomfortably. Something's wrong. Percy feels like he may have accidentally treaded into shark-infested waters, so he tries to backtrack as much as he can. "I'll be counting on it," she says, in a tight voice.

"Excellent," Percy says. And it really is. For all his joking, it feels like a huge weight has been lifted off his chest. He and Annabeth Chase are friends. Annabeth Chase, who used to snipe at Piper so aggressively it'd hurt _him_ , who used to frighten him into panic attacks with nothing more than just a look. They're _friends_. They shared _cookies_ together. That's pretty cool. He feels like he's just taken another colossal step up a mountain. His mom will be so excited to hear.

And! She's his seventh Mark!

For the first time, he beams at her and looks at her straight in the eyes. He can't feel the Mark form on him, because that's just not how they work, but he knows if he rolls up his sleeve he'll see a single grey set of initials somewhere and that thrills him. Annabeth looks a little taken aback to see him look at her straight in the eyes, and Percy feels that way, too, because it's been so long that he's made eye contact with someone who's not already on his arm, but it's wonderful, because she's got such pretty eyes. He thinks Piper might have once described them as angry storm clouds. He thinks they're beautiful. He's never seen eyes so intense before.

"You– you're looking me in the eyes," Annabeth says, a little shocked.

"Well, yeah," Percy says. "We can't be friends if you aren't a proper Mark."

Annabeth blinks, startled. "Well. Hello."

"Hey," Percy says cheerfully. "Your eyes are very pretty, did you know that?"

"Um." She blinks again. She's like a newborn kitten. "You might be the first to tell me that."

"Really?"

"They've mainly been described as intimidating."

"I mean, they are," Percy says. "This is why I think my method of working is the best. Because generally people can't hold your gaze because you're quite scary up close, but because I don't look into your eyes it means I can't be frightened off."

"You don't look into my eyes because you have chronic anxiety, Percy."

"Yes, well, that, but also because of the whole you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. You're a prime example of that."

"Of judging books by their cover?"

"By being mistakenly judged," he corrects. "People think you're terrifying, but you're really not."

She sits up, almost as if she's affronted. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well. You're really quite nice when you dig deep. I mean, look, we've held a civil conversation for the past twenty minutes, and so far you've only threatened to leave me once and the worst thing you've called me is a fruit fly. Plus we've exchanged sad tragic backstories, so technically we're best friends. I'd consider this a success."

Annabeth is watching him with an odd expression Percy can't quite place. It's something like wistfulness, adoration and scorn, and Percy isn't sure what to feel. "You're a lot different up close," she says. "I thought you were shy."

That was her first mistake. People like to assume he is because of his anxiety and sparing Marks. It's a game he plays. It's almost funny to watch them change when he takes off like a firecracker.

"I'm not shy around my friends," he says. "And we're friends now, so you get the full package."

"What about that time at Piper's? The first time she double-booked?"

Percy smiles wryly at her. "Like I said. You don't scare me."

"But everyone else does?"

"You're just very interesting," he says. "You're like an onion, you know. Or a cake. Layers. There are just lots of elements about you. Boring people are the scary ones, but you've always been– well. Not boring."

Annabeth raises an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Like, why _Piper_? Why did you two even start fighting? Why do you cover yourself from head to toe every day? Why are you so scary? How did you become so– _respected_ in school?"

She laughs humourlessly. "Questions of the universe."

"Well, we're friends now." For the first time, Percy rolls up his sleeve, and they both stare at the grey AC on his upper arm. "In due time I suppose a few of them will be answered."

Annabeth looks at the Mark on his arm for a long time.

"You okay?" he asks softly.

"How does it feel?" she asks abruptly. "To– to have to go through that every day?"

"You get used to it," he says. "Besides, it's kind of nice to know that every Mark on your body is someone you love and not just a stranger you see on a bus, you know?"

Annabeth manages a smile. "Even me?"

Percy nods. "One day." He pauses and grins a little. "I haven't felt how good your hugs are yet. That's kind of a deal-breaker for me. Speaking _of_ , actually–"

"I'm not hugging you, Jackson."

Percy's quite unbothered. He wasn't expecting anything else. "Fair enough," he says. "Want another cookie?"

"I'm all right."

He seals the packet and puts it in his bag. "Well, I'm glad this happened," he says. "Can you believe it? We're friends now."

"Not really."

"Me neither. I'm quite excited about this. You know what this means."

"That you're going to be hovering around me like a mosquito for the rest of my life?"

"Quite precisely. I am going to _woo_ you with friendship. I shall text you every day and we'll hang out lots and you won't ever be able to get rid of me, not unless you become horrible and grouchy again."

"Oh, don't you start. Piper's already all up my arse about that."

"It's true, though. Before us, your life was darkness. Mystery. Danger. Now you've been accepted into the cult of friendship."

"Cult is– not the right word."

"Wait until Thalia invites you around for a movie night, it gets pretty cult-ish then. We all sit in a circle and watch as she sets fire to gummy bears."

Annabeth pulls a vaguely pained face. "Well."

"It really isn't that bad, you know, burnt gummy bear actually smells a lot nicer than you'd think it would." Percy starts packing away his things. "Well, free period's nearly over. What lesson do you have next?"

"Maths."

"Marvellous, so do I!" Percy stands up and offers his arm. "Should we walk together?"

"Well, I don't really have much choice, do I?"

"Not at all. Come on, we'll be late if we don't get a wriggle on."

"God, did you just say 'get a wriggle on'?"

"I did indeed," Percy says cheerfully. "Now, come on."

* * *

Annabeth learns to get used to having Percy around.

She's never had proper friends before. Before Piper ("the dark period of your life," Piper once said, and Annabeth had hit her with the pillow) her only friends had been the girls who surrounded her simply for bragging rights. And they were nice enough, she guesses, because whenever one of them would cry they'd all huddle around and stroke her hair and feed her chocolate, but none of them meant anything to Annabeth, because they were all just too damn scared of her for her to even try forge a proper friendship.

And then comes along Percy, who is completely _fearless_.

Ever since their talk on the courtyard, he's suddenly everywhere, and unlike the girls from before, he's not bothered by her in the slightest. He walks with her to class and chats to her in the lunch line and sits with her during free period and flicks rubber bands at her across the room in Geography. Honestly, Annabeth feels quite overwhelmed. She's never had such an attentive friend before, except maybe Piper. But Percy text her memes periodically throughout the day and sends her links to Vine compilations he found funny and sometimes calls her at ridiculous hours of the day to tell her things he just found out.

("Did you know snails have approximately fourteen thousand teeth?"

"It's four am, Percy, for God's sake.")

It's weird and Annabeth isn't used to it in the slightest but Percy doesn't appear to be leaving anytime soon she supposes she'll just have to deal. Which isn't a wholly bad thing, to be honest. In fact, she kind of likes this new development in her life.

"It's a new chapter," Piper tells her. "A new leaf turned over. Look at you, burying all these hatchets. I'm so proud of you."

Annabeth isn't sure what that's meant to mean, but she appreciates the sentiment.

It's funny, though. She thinks Percy may have been the first domino to fall, because now that they're friendly she's seeing a significant change in the attitudes towards her from everyone else. She and Nico become great pals, surprisingly, because one day she catches him shuffling some Mythomagic cards and as a closeted nerd herself all it takes is a casual walk over and a "oh, you play Mythomagic?" and then suddenly she's staying up until two arguing with him about characters and theories and lore over text. Thalia still despises her, and she's not really sure that's going to change, but even she's become nicer over time. Instead of glaring holes into her head every day, she's resorted to holding a neutral expression, which Annabeth considers some sort of improvement, and once during Maths when their terrified substitute was trying to control the class Annabeth had muttered something along the lines of _you'd think she's never seen a teenage girl_ _before_ and Thalia had actually hummed in approval, so technically they've agreed on a topic, which technically also makes them friends.

"I like the way you think," Percy says, pointing a fry at her, "but that's not really how things work."

"Let her celebrate," Piper chides. "She's new at this."

Annabeth almost tips her coleslaw all over her.

Grover she grows accustomed to. He's a bit funny around her for the first few months – he's either like the girls and scared out of his wits, and thus trying to be as nice as he can around her so she doesn't sprout devil horns and impale him, or he's completely and utterly fascinated. It's like she's a lizard, or grasshopper of sorts – he's both terrified and intrigued at the same time. She does get used to it, though. After all, deep down he's just a big plant boy. He's crushing on Juniper Green, too, which says enough about him, because they're both sweet and soft and green-thumbed, so she supposes he's bearable.

Jason is even worse, though. Annabeth feels like she just may have accidentally done something to have both the Graces hold such a vendetta against her. He is a lot more civil than Thalia, which is quite nice, but he can't even hold a conversation with her. Annabeth suspects it's something to do with the fact that he's Piper's boyfriend and Annabeth has been less than pleasant to her in the past, although personally she thinks with all the good deeds she's been doing lately it should all cancel out and grudges should all be forgotten and whatnot, but the Graces are nothing if they aren't stubborn. Annabeth is pretty sure she could go down on both knees and beg for Jason's forgiveness, even though she hasn't done anything to him (well, nothing bad, anyway), and he'd still be too noble and loving and protective and ignore her on Piper's behalf.

Piper did score well, though. Annabeth hadn't been kidding when she said there was a point she had considered Jason for a potential boyfriend. They could have been the golden couple. They could have _dominated_ together. But it's better that he's with Piper. They love each other a lot and he's much too admirable to do anything as manipulative as Annabeth.

She's glad she's gotten out of her lifestyle, but privately she doesn't regret a thing. Jason would have held her back. She's glad she did what she did, because it's taught her lots of valuable life lessons. One of the most notable being how not to be a twatty arsehole.

Anyway.

Friendships.

She supposes she can't exactly classify any of them as 'friendships' yet, though, because none of their Marks have turned yellow. And Annabeth would know. She checks them almost every day. She's not sure why, but she thinks it may be to prove her mother wrong. Don't get her wrong, she still hates Athena and hope she burns in Hell, along with whatever man she's got trapped in California, but something about her words just stuck.

 _You're heartless, Annabeth! Your father may have been around more but he sure as hell didn't teach you how to love!_

Just thinking of them makes her toes curl. She's _not_ heartless. She can love.

She _can_.

And just so luckily, for the first time, the universe appears to agree with her.

Her first yellow Mark appears in Piper's bedroom. Annabeth is lying on the bed, her chin propped in her hands, and her ankles crossed in mid-air, and Piper is sat cross-legged next to her, her art book open and fabric scraps everywhere. She's taken art as an elective and one of her projects is to design and then create a piece of clothing, and Annabeth personally thinks she's taking it much too seriously but she's in that mode where if Annabeth tells her that she'd probably twist both her thumbs off and jam them up her nose.

"I just don't know what to make," Piper says. "She's given us so many options. How do I pick?"

"Just make a dress," Annabeth says. "You can be the most creative with that."

"I know." Piper sighs unhappily. "But a kimono looks ever so fun. And so does a jacket. Annabeth, I could make you a new jacket! Imagine how cool it would be. Oh, please, let me make you a jacket."

"Why me?"

"Well, you've got a very nice figure, and Thalia would sooner swallow me whole than let me use her to be a model. And I can't use one of the boys because I was hoping if it turns out nice enough I might be able to artfully borrow it sometimes, and you also live with me so if I make something that I would want to wear it would make stealing it much easier. Please say yes, Annabeth, my whole semester grade is resting on you."

Annabeth rolls her eyes. "Fine, whatever."

Piper beams at her in a way that tells Annabeth that she knew she was going to agree all along. Knowing Piper, she'd probably already have several sketches fit with Annabeth's measurements, too. "Marvellous," she says. "Now this just begs the question as to what to make for you. What do you want – kimono, dress, or jacket?"

"It's your grade, not mine."

Piper hums. "Well, I think I could do more with a jacket than I could with any of the others, and if I really want to make a kimono I can just buy a sewing machine." (That's also another thing Annabeth's still not used to – how fricking _loaded_ the McLeans are.) "Here are all the swatches I have," she says, flipping a few pages in her sketchbook. "Which ones do you like? It doesn't matter if the colour themes don't work, I can just dye them."

Annabeth chews her lip as she examines all of them. Some are simply horrendous – Piper's got a square of hot-pink latex stapled near the top of the page, and there's a piece of cotton patterned with kittens that is just– _rotten_. Annabeth thinks for a bit before she points to a nice pale pink.

"That one's nice," she says.

"I was hoping you'd say that," Piper says. "Pink looks great on you." She leans over and flips another page, revealing yet another spread of fabrics. "Pick another. Preferably one that works with pink."

Annabeth tilts her head. Eventually, she comes across another swatch, a dark blue denim, that she quite likes, so she reaches over and points at it.

However, in doing so, her sleeve pulls up, and a good section of the inside of her forearm is visible.

Piper gasps. Before Annabeth can even ask what's going on, she seizes her arm and brings right up to her eyes, almost dislocating her elbow in the process.

"You have a yellow Mark!" she screeches.

Annabeth sits up. " _What_?"

"Look!" Piper thrusts her arm right in her face, and it takes Annabeth's eyes several seconds to adjust, but when they do, she sees that, sure enough, she _does_. She gapes at it, and then wrenches her arm free of Piper and looks at it closely.

When she sees the initials, despite the pounding of her head and heart, she has to smile. Of course Percy's her first proper friend.

"Well?" Piper demands. "Who is it? Who's the chosen one?"

"It's Percy."

" _Percy_!" Piper looks furious. "How come _he_ ends up being your first friend?"

Annabeth shrugs. "Maybe I just prefer him."

Piper squawks, so indignantly Annabeth can't help but laugh. " _Prefer_ him! I'm your best friend!"

"Yeah, but you're, like. My only friend, too."

Piper grumbles. "Well, not apparently. That appears to be _Percy_."

Annabeth reaches over and pats her head. "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll show up soon."

"I better," Piper says. "Otherwise we can't have girly sleepovers anymore and play Game Of Life until three am, because that's only things I do with my friends."

Annabeth starts to laugh. "You're really upset about this."

"Of course I am!" Piper exclaims crossly. "I've put a lot of work into this relationship. We were, like, enemies, and now you live with me and I'm using you for my final grade. I think that's extreme friendship right there. And fricking– _Percy_ just kind of loitered on the side until I pushed him into approaching you. All he had to do was give you some cookies and you two were friends. I had to basically tie you down and threaten you with a knife into friendship. And even _that_ didn't work."

Annabeth laughs harder.

"No, stop laughing at me! I'm really quite offended!" Piper digs through her pocket and resurfaces with her phone. "You know what, I'm actually going to call him about this."

"Oh my God, don't do _that_ –"

Defiantly, Piper stabs Percy's contact and puts him on loudspeaker. It rings three times before he picks up, and as Annabeth is trying to get her breath back the first thing Piper shouts is, "How _dare_ you be Annabeth's first yellow Mark!"

There is a decided silence for about four seconds, before Percy says, "Um?"

"You're her first yellow Mark!" Piper seethes. "And I'm very cross about it."

"Her _first_ yellow Mark?"

Annabeth's eyes widen as she realises that Percy has not been made aware of the fact that she's never had a friend before, but Piper readily barrels on like it's only a minor inconvenience. "Yes, her first. She didn't have any friends before us, we changed her life, yadda yadda yadda, old news. What _I'm_ annoyed about is how on earth you ended up being her first, because I was very nice to her long before you were and I'm just cross. What powers do you have?"

"Is Annabeth there with you right now?"

Annabeth takes that as her cue. She leans in. "Hey, Percy."

Piper splutters indignantly. "No, don't _communicate_! That'll make you even more friendly!"

"She's a bit jealous," Annabeth says.

"Am _not_!"

"I see," Percy says.

"How do you do it, Jackson?" Piper demands. "I want to be Annabeth's friend, too!"

"Maybe it's just my devilish good looks," Percy says.

"Shut up, no it's not," Annabeth says. "You look like a lemur."

"I've got devilish good looks, too," Piper says. "And I'm making you a jacket. This is so unfair. What does a girl have to do?"

"Be me," Percy says, almost immediately.

"Shut up, lemur face," Annabeth says.

"That's not how you treat your first friend."

"I _swear_ , Percy–"

Piper just frowns unhappily. "Whatever," she says. "You're no help, Percy. I called you so we could band together and try and solve the mystery that is Annabeth Chase, but clearly you're more interested in other matters."

Percy laughs. "Why are you making such a big deal of this, anyway?" he asks. "It's just a yellow Mark."

"You're only saying that because you're the yellow Mark," Piper says. "I've been friends with Annabeth for years longer than you have."

"I mean. I wouldn't exactly call whatever you guys had brewing between you _friendship_ –"

"I would," Annabeth says.

"Yes, well, you're seventeen and _I'm_ your first friend, so I'm not sure you're really allowed to have a say in this at all."

"Shut up Percy, no one likes you."

"Tell that to your yellow Mark."

Annabeth seethes silently.

Piper just beams at her. "Good, you're fighting. Maybe your yellow Mark will fade and I'll be the first."

"Face it, McLean," Percy says. "She just likes me better."

"Untrue," Annabeth says.

"Again, your Mark would beg to differ."

"I just can't believe this," Piper says, still irritated. "Percy, tell me your secrets. What did you do?"

"I just loved and cared for her when no one else did."

Piper lets out a noise so indignant Annabeth bursts out laughing. " _Loved and cared_ – _!_ I did that! I loved and cared for her! I took her in! I'm literally clothing her!"

"Maybe it just wasn't enough," Percy says. "But I can't really blame her, after all. My charm is irresistible."

"No it's not," Annabeth says.

"You keep denying it, Annabeth, but your yellow Mark–"

"You're useless, Percy," Piper says. "How very dare you. In fact, I'm ending this phone call right now."

Percy starts laughing. "All right, Salty-Pants."

Annabeth also starts laughing, because what kind of an insult is that, but before she can make fun of Percy for it Piper huffs and ends the call, and then tosses her phone onto the bed next to her.

"The nerve of some people," she says crossly. "Honestly."

"Yours will turn up soon," Annabeth promises.

"It better," Piper says sulkily. "I refuse to be shown up by Percy." She flips open her sketchbook again, maybe a little more aggressively than she should. "Anyway. It's not as if I really cared that much, anyway."

"Sure."

"I'm completely serious," Piper says in a voice that says she's really not. "Now, onto denim. What colour did you want?"

* * *

(Piper's Mark turns yellow a few days later.

"Finally," she says. "I knew you loved me. And I would also like to point out it's a brighter yellow than Percy's, so clearly you like me better."

Annabeth just rolls her eyes. The sparkle in Piper's eyes and the way she hugs her just that big longer and tighter afterwards tells her that deep down it means a lot more to her than she's letting on. Annabeth understands, though. She returns the hug just as tightly. She know has her two favourite people maybe on the planet tattooed onto her arm and she couldn't be more pleased.)

* * *

Percy is around Piper's house when, in the middle of their second round of Monopoly, she smacks her forehead and goes, "Damn!"

"What's wrong?"

"I think I left my Biology homework at school!"

"Why did this come to you in the middle of Monopoly?"

"I was thinking about how you're unfairly good at this and then I went off on a slight tangent about all the other things you're better than me at."

Soothingly, he pats her shoulder. "Well. There, there. I've got a spare sheet in my bag, if you want me to bring it down for you to take a picture of."

"You angel, I knew there was a reason you were my favourite."

"Where is my bag?"

"I think the maid might have moved it upstairs. Be careful, though, the she-demon will have woken up by now."

Percy can't help but laugh as he clambers to his feet. "Annabeth's not that awful."

"You haven't seen her this early. If you thought she was bad at school, in the mornings she's like Jack The Ripper. On _steroids_."

"It's– ten."

"Your point?"

Percy rolls his eyes fondly and starts to make his way towards the staircase. He's been here so many times that at this point the size and grandness of everything simply doesn't shock him anymore, but just recently Aphrodite changed the banisters to marble and put a red thick rug down the stairs ("she likes to pretend she's walking a red carpet every time she comes down for breakfast") and it still shocks him. Back at home, sometimes they barely have enough money to make ends meet, and at the McLean residence they have so much that on a whim Aphrodite can casually just install a five thousand dollar carpet and _fricking marble banisters_.

That's a _lot_. Percy's head gets a bit dizzy as he walks up.

(He will say, it's extremely comfortable. Aphrodite kind of had a point.)

He patters along the hallway when he reaches the top. He's not quite sure where the maid would have put his bags – she has lots of options, which is only marginally terrifying – but at least he knows that he won't walk in on a naked Aphrodite or anything. Her bedroom is upstairs. As are all her _'chambres de beauté'_.

(Yes, that's a thing. He's seen them. Every wall is panelled in floor-length mirrors.)

All the rooms down here are spare bedrooms or Piper's bedroom, so he'll be fine. No nudity for him today.

He feels almost cheery as he pokes his head through every door. He can't spot his bag anywhere, but he doesn't feel panicked. The maids are just as wary as him about stumbling across nakedness. They apparently have set hours where they clean Aphrodite's suite, all of which are when she's out of the house.

His cheerful mood comes crashing to earth with a bump when he enthusiastically flings another door open and quite readily realises that this one is occupied.

"What are you _doing_ here?" Annabeth snaps.

"I, uh–" Percy can't speak. He's never seen Annabeth so exposed before – she's not wearing any makeup and her legs are bare, and she's holding a hair straightener in her hand. One side of her hair is sleek, and the other falls just below her shoulders in a mess of curls.

Percy didn't know her hair was curly. She looks pretty with it like that.

Annabeth arches an eyebrow. "Well?"

"I was looking for my bag."

"Well, it's not here."

"I didn't know your hair was curly," Percy says.

"That's a shame."

"You should leave it like that."

That stops her. Only momentarily, but Percy notices. "And why would I listen to anything you have to say?"

"You wouldn't," Percy says. "But it looks nice."

Annabeth watches him carefully, and after several long moments she turns back to her vanity with a shrug of her shoulders. "Yes, well," she says in the reflection of the mirror. She picks her straighteners up again. "Whatever."

She's thrown off by him. Percy suppresses a smile.

"Stop smirking," Annabeth says shrewishly. "You look like a mole rat."

Percy just laughs as he heads out the room. He loves being friends with Annabeth Chase.

* * *

It's winter break and Percy has just settled down with his laptop and a mug of hot chocolate when his phone pings with a text.

 **Annabeth** : come over

He rolls his eyes at her straight-forwardness.

 **Percy** : what if i dont want to

 **Annabeth** : I don't care

 **Annabeth** : i have snacks

 **Percy** : so do i

 **Percy** : and i dont have to travel twenty minutes in the freezing cold to get them

 **Annabeth** : plus movies

 **Percy** : again i have those too

 **Annabeth** : i have me

 **Annabeth** : you cant get that where you are

 **Percy** : your intillect outstands me

 **Annabeth** : intellect

 **Annabeth** : truly so does yours

 **Annabeth** : now come over or ill break your arm

 **Percy** : i know you didn't have many friends before us but that's not how you win hearts

 **Annabeth** : percy i swear

 **Percy** : ill be around in ten

* * *

Percy doesn't even knock anymore. He slides the spare key out of one of the plant pots and slots it in the door, nudging it open. Quietly, he pads indoors, and shuts the door behind him. He can hear the soft chatter of television from another room. "Hello?" he calls.

Abruptly, the noise stops. "In here."

A smile stretches across his face. He tries to suppress it and heads over to the living room.

He peers around the doorframe. Annabeth is sitting by herself in the middle of one of the sofas with a blanket wrapped tightly around her. The TV is on and paused in the middle of a movie Percy doesn't recognise, but honestly all he can focus on is Annabeth herself. She looks rather cuddly, in a sweatshirt that Percy is pretty sure belongs to Piper and a pair of fuzzy socks, but she's got a cross expression on her face peeping out of the folds of the blanket and she just looks so much like an affronted kitten that Percy can't help but let out a snort at the sight of her.

"Don't laugh at me," Annabeth snaps. "I'll send you straight back home."

Percy rolls his eyes and flops down on the sofa next to her. "What are we watching?"

Annabeth blinks a little, like she was expecting an onslaught of questions before they continued with the movie, but she goes with it nonetheless. "Mean Girls," she says. "It's one of my favourites."

"Go figure."

Annabeth scowls even harder and digs at his thigh with her toes. "You shut _up_."

Percy laughs and curls his legs under him. "I thought we were having a movie night, you need to be nice."

Annabeth scrunches her nose up. "You need to take your shoes off," is all she says.

Dutifully, Percy slides off his Converse and then wriggles his toes in his socks. He glances at Annabeth and sees her scrambling around for the remote, and hesitates. Then he decides to just go the hog and flings his legs on top of her lap.

Almost immediately, Annabeth shoves them off. "Absolutely _not_."

"It's a package deal. If you want me you get the snuggles."

Annabeth glares at his legs, like they offend him. "Your feet absolutely _pong_."

Percy takes that as an invitation to press them against her nose. She positively screeches and swats them away. "I will literally kick you out of this house."

"No you won't," Percy says. "There's a reason you invited me, after all."

He doesn't mean for the mood to sober so quickly but it does. Annabeth stares pointedly at the television.

"The house is big when it's empty," she says, in a hurried mumbly rush, like she's gargling on the words. "So what."

It's almost surreal to know that Annabeth Chase is afraid of being alone. Percy watches her carefully. He knows Piper is away and Aphrodite is in California, and he knows that Annabeth would have been left alone, but he didn't know it terrified her, and he didn't know that's why she invited him around.

The thought comforts him, oddly. Annabeth had thought about everyone, and yet she had picked _him_ because when she is by herself in a gaping house that swallows you up when it's empty she knew that he would be enough to scare away the loneliness.

 _What are even doing here? You're useless!_

He flinches at the memory but it floods his veins with something. Not anymore, he's not. Because Annabeth Chase wants, _needs_ him around.

He clears his throat and reaches for the remote. "So, Mean Girls?"

Annabeth blinks at him. Her eyes shine with gratitude, and then she blinks again and it's gone. She swallows and nods. "Yeah."

"I haven't actually seen this movie before," Percy says.

"You're lying."

"Not at all."

"You haven't seen this movie?"

"Nope. Heard it isn't even that good."

Annabeth's scowl comes back again but it's good-natured this time and something in Percy's chest warms. "Well, your taste must be even worse than I thought," she mutters. "I've got several movies picked out and I don't care what your thoughts are on them, we're watching them. Especially Mean Girls."

Percy picks up the stack of DVDs on the coffee table and absently flicks through them. "Beauty And The Beast," he says. "Pitch Perfect. The Notebook." He looks over at Annabeth. "You're so _generic_ , Annabeth."

"Oh, I'm sorry?"

"These are literally the epitome of chick-flicks."

"There are more."

"Mm." Percy flicks through several. "The Day After Tomorrow?"

"It's a good movie. Sci-fi, dystopian. It's got Jake Gyllenhaal in it."

"Ah." Percy moves onto the next one. "Miss Potter? That sounds boring."

"Miss Potter is a beautiful movie," Annabeth says firmly. "In fact, after Mean Girls, we're watching Miss Potter."

"It looks naff, Annabeth."

"And you look like a strangled partridge, but have I ever mentioned anything? Exactly. Now, be quiet, we need to start Mean Girls if we want to get anywhere near through all these movies."

Percy stretches and stands up. "You set it up," he says. "I'll get snacks."

Annabeth pauses. "Snacks?"

"Well, duh. We're going to be watching hours of movies and I'm a growing teenage boy, we're going to need some food."

"You can't just go through Piper's cupboards."

"'Course I can. I've done it before."

"But it's her house."

"Technically, it's yours too. And will you let me take some snacks?"

"Well–"

"See, foolproof. Besides, Piper steals more than enough food from my house. I'm just repaying the favour." Percy emerges from the kitchen cupboards with armfuls of snacks. He dumps them all unceremoniously on the sofa. There are crisps, soft drinks, chocolate bars, small fairy cakes, juice pouches – it's like a middle school party on steroids. Percy knows Piper won't mind – quite the opposite, actually, her mom always forgets it's just the two of them and buys too much food, so technically if they didn't eat it now it would all just end up in the bin – so without a single feeling of remorse he curls his legs under his body and shoves a straw through the top of his Capri-Sun.

Annabeth stares at him for several seconds, before shrugging and reaching for her own.

The movie starts to play, but Percy isn't paying attention. All he can do is focus on the room around him and the girl beside him and frankly how odd this whole situation is because if you had told him three months ago one day he'd be willingly watching around ten hours of movies with Annabeth Chase he would have laughed in your face. They've never done this before, never had a reason to, and it scares him how natural this all is. They're just sitting on the sofa together, watching the cheesiest chick-flicks of the 2000s Annabeth could find, and Percy's _enjoying_ it. This could be the eighth time they're doing this, from how easy it all is.

He glances over at Annabeth. She's absently sucking at her straw, her eyes glimmering from the TV screen. In the waning light, she looks ethereal.

"Stop staring at me," she says. "I can feel you."

"Sorry," Percy says. He pauses. "Can I have some blanket? I'm cold."

"No."

Percy ignores her and tugs at the end of it peeping out by her socked feet. Surprisingly, she just lets him, like she had expected nothing less. He yanks it a little so he can drape it over both of them, and Annabeth grunts a little at her forced change in position. She grabs a pillow and props it up by her head, leaning against it. Her hair is damp, Percy realises. She's probably just washed it. It smells nice. Peaches and clean laundry. A bit like Piper, actually, but her own smell is somewhere there, too, soft and earthy, like a comforting sweater. She normally sprays herself with perfume so you can't smell it.

Percy absently wonders if that's another one of her security blankets. She hides everything from everyone: her Marks, her family, her history with the soulmate system. Maybe it's become an instinct to hide herself, too.

"Dammit, Jackson, if you don't start paying attention to the movie I will take out your eyeballs and glue them to the screen."

Percy huffs out a laugh and turns to watch the film.

He'll crack her soon enough.

* * *

"No way, man," Nico says. "Boulevard Of Broken Dreams was far, far better than Wake Me Up When September Ends."

"But Wake Me Up When September Ends is a _classic_!" Percy insists. He can hear Grover wheeze as he struggles to catch up with the two of them, but he doesn't even have it in him to slow down. He's just so bemused that Nico could possibly think this way. "It's – it's got so much meaning! It's so personal and–"

"Boulevard Of Broken Dreams is _iconic_ ," Nico says. "That bass riff is recognizable from miles away. You can't seriously tell me Wake Me Up When September Ends is even half the song that Boulevard Of Broken Dreams is."

"I so can! I'm not saying Boulevard Of Broken Dreams is a bad song, I'm just saying that Wake Me Up When September Ends is better. I mean, that opening guitar? Come _on_ , Nico!"

And that's when it happens.

To be fair, it was almost inevitable. They were travelling at top-speed through a busy corridor and none of them were paying much attention to each other except each other, which is quite dangerous when you're considered "invisible" and people don't part for you like they do for the likes of Drew Tanaka and Annabeth Chase. Grover in himself is a hazard, too, because he's got his crutches, and when he's trying to keep up with everyone on them he can be quite nightmarish when it comes to spacial awareness, and Nico and Percy are both carrying giant binders.

So when they round the corner Percy accidentally smacks straight into someone.

They both go flying. Nico and Grover screech to a halt in pure as Percy hits the ground, butt-first. He sees a flurry of paper and floral patterns up ahead, so he reckons his assailant has also suffered a similar fate, and immediately he clambers to his feet, gathering his sheets together, his palms sweating. "I'm so sorry," he gushes. "I swear, I wasn't looking where I was going – "

"Oh, don't worry," says a pretty voice, and Percy freezes because _whoa_. "It was just as much my fault."

Percy slowly looks up. Crouching only a few feet ahead of him, gathering her books together, is none other than Allison Cooper.

Percy's brain spirals into spaghetti.

He can see her talking but all he can focus on is her, because she's so _pretty_. She's got soft caramel skin and her hair pulled into a ponytail, and she's wearing a flowery blouse with blue jeans and heels, and got glitter on her cheekbones, and black drawings all the way up her left arm. She's so beautiful it's almost painful to look at her.

"Percy?" she says, and Percy realises with a start that she's collected all their papers together and is offering him his binder.

He just stares at her. "You know my name."

She laughs, all twinkly. "Of course I do." She gives him a little sideways smile. "You know mine, right?"

"Yes! Yes, I do, you're Allison, of course I know your name."

She grins and then stands up. Percy scrambles up too, handing her some scraps of paper he had collected in his arms. "Here," he says dumbly.

"Thanks." She puts them all into her binder, and then gives him a little smile. "I'll see you around, Percy."

"Yeah, you. You too."

Percy watches as she disappears down the hallway, her friends flanking her on either side. They're all extremely well dressed, but the only one Percy can focus on is Allison. She just moves so effortlessly, so prettily, that Percy's heart does a funny little jump-flip.

Nico and Grover move next to him. Nico nods understandingly and puts a hand on his shoulder. "Wow," he says. "You didn't choke."

"Or vomit," Grover says.

"I know," Percy says. "That's– good."

"Good?" Nico lets out a whoop and flings his arms out. He nearly knocks a girl over and she glares at him but he ignores her. "Perce, that's terrific, man! That's like! A whole mountain you've just climbed."

"That's almost as impressive as you wooing Annabeth Chase," Grover says. "And successfully, may I add."

"I didn't woo her."

"Platonically."

"You just talked to one of the hottest girls in the school without looking stupid," Nico says. "In fact, I may argue that you were actually pretty suave about the whole thing. That's a big deal! I'm proud of you, dude."

"Thanks." Percy looks at the space where she just was. "She's super pretty, isn't she?"

"I like her red-haired friend," Grover says. "The one who's named after a tree."

"Cherry," Percy says, at the same time as Nico says, "Willow."

"No, the other one," Grover says. "Juniper."

"Why are they all named after trees?" Percy says.

"Allison's not."

"That's because she's the prettiest."

"Uh oh," Nico teases. "Looks like someone's in love."

Percy fights his blush. "I'm not in love."

"Mm-mm." Nico doesn't sound convinced. "Well, we'd best be off. Grover, give Percy a bit of a push. We need to shake him out of his Allison-Cooper-induced-trance."

"Shut up," Percy says, feeling his cheeks heat up. "She's just– pretty."

"Can't argue with that, mate," Nico says. "I just know how to keep my jaw closed."

Percy shoves Nico into a locker for that. He deserves it.

* * *

Annabeth's soulmate Mark arrives in History.

She's sitting in her seat when Bianca di'Angelo asks timidly for a pencil, and Annabeth reaches forward to give her one and then her sleeve rolls down and suddenly she sees a flash of red and she nearly drops the pencil because _what_.

"Annabeth?" Bianca says.

Annabeth wants to scream because _how can she still be asking for a pencil in such a time_ but she doesn't because that would be undiplomatic and it would also get her into a fair bit of trouble, so all she does is shove the pencil into her hands and try and not show her panic on her face. She can sense Piper's gaze on her across the room but she pointedly doesn't turn around, because that would be admitting defeat, and she doesn't want Piper to see how uncomfortable she feels.

They may be friends now but her pride still remains like a big ugly stain.

She knows looking at the Mark will be even worse, so she pretends like she can't feel it searing through her skin like a red-hot iron. She doesn't know what the initials are, but she has a damn good idea, and if she's right, which she normally is, she knows she's going to be so, so, so screwed.

She's just fixed everything up. Her life can't be imploding already.

But she's been brought up an actress and she has a part to play, so she resumes her normal look of disdain. She's honestly surprised she's maintaining it as well as she is. She almost has herself fooled. In fact, when the bell goes, and she meets Piper by the door to head into lunch, and Piper asks, "were you quite all right back there? You looked a bit like a panicked animal", it's almost effortless for her answer to be, "I was just trying to avoid touching di'Angelo. That jacket looked like it was from the nineteen hundreds, I didn't want to catch fleas." Piper just shoves her and tells her, "You big fat cow, Bianca is _lovely_ " and that's that and Annabeth wants to kind of put her head through a paper shredder.

However, all things circle back, in the end. Annabeth is in the library, doing some last-minute revision for her upcoming Geography test, and Piper is sitting with her, doing nothing but being a complete nuisance. She keeps flying paper aeroplanes into the side of Annabeth's head and cutting out various shapes from paper and balancing them on her shoulders, nose, face, head, anywhere she can really get to, really.

It's driving Annabeth absolutely _barking_.

"Will you stop?" she demands.

"Sorry," Piper says, not sounding sorry at all. "I'm just bored."

"You don't have to stay here."

"I know, that's what makes me such a brilliant friend." Piper sighs and mournfully tosses a ball of paper in the air. She throws it too high and the fan lazily swinging above their head catches it and tosses it several metres over the bookshelves. "Is this really what you spend your good, free time doing? Revising?"

"I have a test."

"And so do I, but do you see me stressing?"

"You scrounge by with Cs, Piper. Unlike you, I actually want to do well."

"Yeah, so you keep saying. I'll be quiet, whatever."

That lasts all but two minutes.

"Annabeth–"

"For God's sake, Piper!"

"I was just wondering if I could borrow a pen."

Annabeth rolls her eyes and moodily flicks her one. To no one's surprise, Piper doesn't even use it. She picks it up, scribbles for what couldn't have been longer than five seconds across her hand, and then switches on her phone and leaves it abandoned on the table. Annabeth tries to ignore her, but it's difficult, especially when ten seconds later she asks, "Do you think it'll be worth it to learn Elvish?"

"I'm sorry?"

"I was thinking about learning it," Piper says. "As a language."

"Elvish?"

"Why not."

"There are so many other better beneficial languages to use. Elvish doesn't actually exist anywhere on earth."

"Then you learn it with me. And we can have our own private conversations and make fun of people without them realizing."

"As fun and totally not mindless as that sounds, I think I'll pass."

Piper slumps back in her seat and scowls. "Fine, then, whatever. I'll get Thalia to learn it with me. I'm sure she'll appreciate it."

Annabeth rolls her eyes again and turns back to her textbook. She probably should have brought Percy here instead of Piper. He'd be nice and quiet for her, but he'd also provide some reassuring shoulder pats whenever something got particularly stressful. He'd probably also have a good supply of cookies, too – he always does, it's something of a habit now. In any case, he'd be bringing a lot more to the table than Piper is, because all Piper is bringing to the table is paper shreds and evil glares from the librarian.

Annabeth tells her just as much.

"Well, that's your opinion," Piper says. "I understand that you're all in love with him and whatever, but you really don't have to slag off your bestest friend just because of it."

She means it completely harmlessly but Annabeth _freezes_.

Piper notices. Her eyebrows come together. "Hey, what's wrong?" she asks, concerned. "I didn't– I didn't _mean_ it, you're not _actually_ slagging me off–"

Annabeth shakes her head. Everything feels jerky, stiff, like all her joints have been rusted together. "No, um. Don't. Don't worry, it's all good."

Piper peers at her. "Annabeth, you look like you're going to be sick. Is everything okay? Did I say something?"

"No."

 _Yes. Yes yes yes._

Piper studies her. Annabeth stares pointedly down at her textbook and curses herself. One con to them being enemies for so long is that they know each other's weaknesses and they know when the other is showing it. It's how they've become so good at getting in all the chinks of the armour, how dangerous it used to be. And they're friends now, and Piper paints her nails almost on a daily basis and chats to her about boys and what brand of cereal she likes the best, so it's all okay, but those habits are still _there_ , and maybe they always will.

And sometimes it'll help. Sometimes Annabeth can look at Piper and know instantly what's wrong, and she can silently come nearer with a form of medicine (hugs, movies, food – she's also able to tell which of the above she needs). But now Piper can look at Annabeth and put a diagnosis on it immediately.

Piper's eyes flicker with realization and suddenly she _knows_. Annabeth shuts her eyes in defeat.

"Roll up your sleeve," Piper says.

"No."

"Denying it is only going to make it worse."

Annabeth swallows. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You mean you _don't_ have a soulmate Mark?"

Annabeth flinches.

"Roll up your sleeve."

"No."

Piper gives her a look.

Normally Annabeth doesn't crack so easily. But she's curious too. With a huff, she pushes her sleeve back up.

"When did you get it?" Piper asks.

"I don't know. This is the first time I've seen it."

"And you _aren't_ freaking out?"

Annabeth laughs drily. "Do you know me at all, McLean?"

The corner of Piper's mouth twitches, like she almost wants to smile. "Can I see it closer?"

"No."

"Fair enough." Piper leans back. "What are the initials?"

"And you think I'll tell you?"

"Just asking."

Annabeth rolls her eyes and takes a look closer at her wrist. She has to get almost painfully close to make out the initials – she's long sighted and absolutely refuses to wear glasses – but when she squints at it and the letters fuzz into vision her heart beats once, twice, and then _stops_ as her breath gets kicked out of her lungs.

To an extent, she thinks she'd always known it was him. It would make the most sense. But she still had prayed that it wasn't. And all her prayers had apparently fallen on deaf ears.

Piper is oblivious. She arches an eyebrow. "Well?"

Annabeth swallows the poison in the back of her throat. "I'm not telling you."

"Mature."

"It's JG."

"Ha ha. Who is it really?"

Annabeth lifts a shoulder. "DL. I don't know."

"Huh." Piper takes a sip of her drink. "Don't take this the wrong way, or do, I don't care, but for someone who's just received their soulmate Mark you do look awfully close to vomiting."

"Maybe you should get your eyes checked."

"Maybe I should. Or maybe you should learn to become a better liar."

Annabeth stills. "Stop speaking like you know everything."

"I don't. Know everything, I mean." Piper stands up and shoulders her bag. "But what I do know is that those letters on your wrist aren't DL."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

Piper stands there for a long time, casually sipping her kale smoothie. Dressed in a ratty pair of jeans and a stained flannel underneath a denim jacket with her hair sticking up in spikes around her shoulders she doesn't pose an immediate threat but behind her flashing eyes there's a brain almost as dangerous as Annabeth's.

It's a fun game to play when you're in control, like angering a lion behind bars. But now Annabeth feels like she's just been dropped in the lion pit because Piper is not meant to know this much.

And now her heart's on the line.

It's getting too risky now. Annabeth is walking a fragile line. Soon it's going to snap.

"You know," Piper says eventually, "you do have a nasty habit of lying about your Marks. It's only going to get you in trouble."

"You don't know anything."

"Maybe so." Piper shoulders her bag. "Good luck with your soulmate, Chase. You'll need it."

* * *

Now. Here's the thing.

Once upon a time Percy had lots of Marks. Dozens. They were all little yellow and grey specks, dotted up his arms like freckles. He didn't really pay much mind to them – never needed to, really – but they were fun to have, and sometimes during class when he was bored he'd join them up with markers, like a big connect-the-dots. Making friends when you were small was easy, because it didn't matter what you looked like or how you talked or what clothes you wore, and Percy was far too excitable and reckless to give two hoots what the other kids thought. Which turned out to be a good thing, because the others were drawn to excitable and reckless, and soon Percy had lots of friends. He would smile at the bus driver and the woman at the sweet shop and he learnt to beam extra wide at the old ladies on the train because if he looked cute enough they would give him lollies.

By the time Percy was thirteen, his arms were speckled with colour.

Then something went very horribly wrong, because his first day of high school was extraordinarily crappy and he ended up getting his head shoved in a toilet and his arm broken within the first week. That wasn't really anything that crazy, because Simon from Maths had his nose broken by one of the seniors and that had made him immensely popular, wearing his bruised nose and plaster like a medal, and yeah, Percy had attracted quite the attention after he limped into school with his arm wrapped up, but then the seniors who had done it had locked him in a cupboard for six hours and threatened to break his back if he ever spilled who had broken his arm.

And thus came Percy's fear of, well– everything.

Marks fade after a year if you've lost contact with the person. It's not that much of a big deal – your grey Marks come and go like nobody's business – but when Percy started slinking into his shell and all his Marks gradually faded, he had not talked to anyone except his mom to earn new ones.

It wasn't all misery and heartache, though. Percy eventually found some friends. Mrs Dyers' announcement of his winning exam mark had put him on the map for a couple of people, as he soon found out, when Piper McLean cornered him one day, and with Piper came her boyfriend Jason and his sister Thalia. They were all perfectly lovely, except Thalia, who was a downright pig ("I take that personally," Thalia says) for the first few months, until she had called Percy a freak and he had tipped his fries down the front of her jumper in retaliation because of just how sick of her he was.

That somehow was the turning point. They then became best friends.

("I'm still not quite sure how that means anything," Jason says.

Thalia doesn't look up from her phone. "Don't be jealous. Just because I have a closer, more meaningful relationship with Percy than you do doesn't mean you have to get catty."

Jason squawks indignantly. "Excuse you! I'm the one who has his name as a tramp stamp!")

Grover came a couple of months later. He was a fumbling, acned agriculture nerd with ropey legs and skin worse than his when Percy first met him. They were assigned partners in History and even though Percy is deathly afraid of people and talking to strangers when Grover's eyes started welling with tears during the WW2 documentary they were watching Percy had uncomfortably patted his arm and Grover had taken that as permission to turn and wail into his shoulder about how awful it all was.

He had been a grey Mark on Percy's arm for a while, the first grey Mark Percy had had in years. But then he started awkwardly shuffling up to Percy during lunchtime because some of the ugly seniors kept knocking him off his crutches and making fun of his goat-bleat laugh ("it's not a goat-bleat laugh!" Grover insists. "It kind of is, man," Jason says. "Don't worry, it's cool") and one day Percy had woken up to find it had turned yellow.

Grover cried when he saw it. Percy did too.

Nico came a bit later. Percy's not really sure how but eventually he just started appearing at their lunch table, and at first he was incredibly unnerving because he wore black clothes and had sickly pale skin and underneath all his Metallica T-shirts he had ribs like wire but soon he was okay, another grey Mark, and then suddenly it just wasn't grey anymore. After a lot of discussion no one's really sure how Nico ended up on their table – Piper once called him a lonely ghost that just sailed from group to group until he was happy – but no one really regrets it because now Percy has one more Mark on his arm and a human attached to the initials.

Nico never says anything but Percy knows he's pleased. Nico's always been a bit of a loner, Percy supposes. He has Marks – hundreds of them – but most of them are grey. He doesn't have lots of friends, and neither does Percy, but Percy thinks that makes the Marks more meaningful. He is one of the nine yellow Marks on Nico's collarbone, and Nico is one of the seven on his arm, and together they both know that to them it means just that bit more.

Point is, the Marks on Percy's arm hadn't come easy, and he values every single one of them because for every yellow set of initials it means that he's coming one step closer to being normal.

And now he has a red Mark.

Thus bringing us to now.

* * *

"Who do you think it is?" Grover asks. "I mean, _AC_. How many girls have you met with the initials AC?"

Percy shrugs hopelessly. He's lying on his bed, staring up at his ceiling, and Grover is sitting on his desk chair, his legs awkwardly splayed on either side, and his crutches propped against the wall. As soon as Percy had seen the soulmate Mark on his arm he had flapped around a bit and then immediately called Grover, the person he felt he could come to for anything. Grover wasn't very good for advice, because it would always end up being "maybe you should stop eating meat" or "have you ever tried yoga?" or some inevitable freak-out that wouldn't do anything except potentially make matters worse, but he was one of Percy's best friends in the whole world, and Percy knew that if anyone would judge him, it most certainly wouldn't Grover.

"I don't know," Percy says. "This is so complicated. Why does it have to come now? Does the universe want me to crash and burn?"

"You mean more so than you're already doing?" Grover asks, completely serious and concerned.

Percy doesn't even have it in him to feel insulted. He just groans and rolls onto his stomach, burying his face into his pillow.

"Hey," Grover says, poking him. "Maybe it's Annabeth."

Percy peeks one eye out. "What drugs are you on?"

"I mean it, Perce. What other ACs have you talked to recently? Besides, you two absolutely adore each other. You're like, married now. It would totally make sense for it to be Annabeth."

"Yeah, but I don't like Annabeth," Percy says, turning his head properly so he can look at him. "Not in that way, anyway. We're just friends."

"Are you sure?" Grover asks. "You two look pretty couply."

"Me and Jason also look pretty couply, but we're not soulmates."

"Yeah, but Jason doesn't have an AC on his arm," Grover says. "You _do_. Come on, Perce! This isn't a coincidence!"

"It's not Annabeth, okay?" Percy says, his voice edging on hard. He doesn't like getting angry at his friends; he hates it, and he also generally thinks his friends are perfect beings who don't really ever have reasons to be angry at, but now he just wants Grover to shut up. To be honest, he isn't really sure what these feelings towards Annabeth are. All instincts in him are telling them it's a crush, but it can't be, because they're friends, and also _as if_ Annabeth will ever see him as anything more than that.

Which is _fine_ , by the way. There is no problem with her seeing him as a friend. Because they're– well, they're friends and that's how friends see friends – as friends.

He's afraid if Grover keeps bringing Annabeth up he might begin to believe that the AC on his arm actually is her, and he won't allow himself to think like that because that's just giving him wings made of tissue paper.

Grover notices the edge in his voice. With one final look, he drops Annabeth.

"Fine," he says. "Who else could it be? It has to be someone you talked to, or even looked at. Did you see anyone on a bus or anything?"

"Definitely not on a bus. I can't do that, remember?"

"Right, I forgot, crippling anxiety." Grover sits back in his chair and chews thoughtfully on his carrot stick. "Well, I can't really offer much, man. All you know is that you've looked into her eyes and her initials are AC, and seeing as that narrows it down to exactly no one, we're kind of–"

Percy suddenly shoots up. "That's it! Grover, you're a _genius_!"

Grover blinks. "I– am?"

"I just remembered! I know who my soulmate is!"

Grover doesn't stand up, because without his crutches he practically can't, but he grips onto the chair and stares Percy wildly in the eyes. " _Who_?"

" _Allison Cooper_!"

Grover almost chokes. " _What_?"

"Remember, when we bumped into her in the corridor? She's an AC, and I looked at her in the eyes!"

Percy stares at Grover's face, trying to catch even a glimpse of joy, but oddly, he looks–almost _upset_. Percy stops rejoicing and frowns. "Hey, what's wrong?"

" _Allison Cooper_?"

Percy stops. Grover is saying her name like she's a venomous animal. "Yeah?"

"You– _Allison Cooper's_ your soulmate?"

"I mean, I think so. Why do you look so gloomy? Come on, man, this is a big deal! It's amazing! I'm so happy!" Grover doesn't look any more pleased so Percy grabs his hands and starts dancing around, pulling Grover to his feet. Grover shakily stumbles around and dutifully lets himself be dragged around as Percy whoops and hollers, but he doesn't look happy in the slightest. It does something funny to Percy's heart, the fact that he doesn't approve. He's always counted on his friends to be there for him through the good and the bad, and now, in the very good, Grover looks sad, like Percy has somehow disappointed him, and that's maybe the worst part.

Percy drops his hands. Whatever. This is a big moment. He's not going to let Grover ruin it for him.

"I need to tell my mom," he says eagerly. "I need– I need to tell her!"

Grover doesn't say anything, just wistfully watches him. Something irks at the back of Percy's head, but he pushes it to the back of his mind. He bursts out his bedroom, shouting, "Mom! Guess what!"

He pretends he doesn't see Grover type something out on his phone. Everything is falling into place for him. He's not going to let Grover ruin it for him.

* * *

It's not an unusual occurrence for Piper to burst into Annabeth's bedroom at random intervals of the day with a mildly panicked look on her face, so when it happens today Annabeth doesn't even glance up from her laptop screen. "I moved the fire hydrant into the laundry room," she says absently, glancing at her notebook and typing up a few words. "And the leftovers from last night are in the back of the fridge behind the tomatoes."

But Piper doesn't respond, and that's the moment Annabeth knows it's serious. She looks over the rim of her laptop and sees Piper, with wet hair from her shower, in a pair of fuzzy socks and stripy leggings, and she's staring at Annabeth with such a terrified look for a second Annabeth is genuinely afraid someone has broken into the house with a knife.

But thankfully – or unthankfully, however you decide to interpret it – there doesn't appear to be a break-in or a potential ax murderer prowling the lavish carpeted stairs, because Piper's first words are, "What are the initials on your soulmate mark?"

Annabeth laughs mirthlessly, half in relief, half in nervousness, and turns her attention back to her laptop. "Yeah, no."

"Annabeth, please."

She closes her laptop and sighs. "Why? What do you _want_ from me?"

"It's important, Annabeth. Please."

"I don't care."

"You might soon." Piper climbs onto Annabeth's bed, right next to her, and holds out her phone. "Read."

Annabeth rolls her eyes, but she takes it anyway and looks at the screen. It's an open text conversation between Piper and Grover, and for a second Annabeth wonders if she accidentally showed her the wrong thing until she starts to read, and that's when her heartbeat begins to pick up.

 **Grover** : piper piper red alert

 **Grover** : percy got his soulmate mark but it's not good

 **Grover** : it's not good at all

 **Grover** : piper please call me this is not good

 _[voice call at 16:24]_

Annabeth looks at Piper. "Percy got his soulmate Mark?"

Piper takes the phone from her. Her expression is grim. "Guess what the initials are."

Annabeth thinks she might already know. "Piper..."

"AC." Piper drops her phone. "His fricking soulmate initials are AC, Annabeth. And guess who he thinks they belong to. No, don't even guess, that's how pissed I am. He thinks the AC stands for Allison Cooper."

" _Allison Cooper_?"

"My reaction exactly!" Piper collapses against the headboard, staring up at the ceiling. "This is useless. His soulmate can't be Allison Cooper, she'll rip him to shreds."

"I didn't even know they _knew_ each other."

"Yeah, well, apparently so. Grover told me they bumped into each other in the hallway that day. Percy seemed a bit smitten but Grover said he just thought it was, like, a momentary thing. He didn't think he'd go and get a soulmate Mark with her initials on it!"

Something hot burns in the pit of Annabeth's stomach. _Jealousy_.

Jealousy has never been a good look. That was one of the first lessons Annabeth taught herself. Jealousy is hot and it seeps in at your heart until every part of you is just _vile_ , but this year has all been about trying new things, apparently. She made some friends and she doesn't smirk menacingly at freshmen anymore but with friendship comes falling in love and getting icky crushes and being jealous of her successors.

Allison Cooper isn't even that _pretty_.

"I..." Annabeth can't even speak. "This is so _weird_."

"It's so _wrong_ , that's what it is." Piper nervously looks at Annabeth, and then takes her hands. "Annabeth–"

Annabeth knows where this is going. She extracts her hands and slides off the bed. "No."

"Annabeth, please!"

"I can't. I won't. I _refuse_."

"You need to tell him. It's not a _coincidence_ , Annabeth–"

"Did Grover say anything about me?" Annabeth demands, and Piper's face crumples. "Percy's not dumb, okay. If his soulmate Mark says AC I would have crossed his mind at least once, but there's a reason he thinks _Allison Cooper_ is his soulmate, and not me. What did Grover say?"

"Annabeth–"

"What did Grover _say_ , Piper?"

Piper sighs. "He– Percy says that you're just his friend. And he'd never see you as anything else."

Annabeth holds out her arms. "See?"

"That doesn't mean anything!" Piper climbs off the bed. "Please, Annabeth, just listen to me, you need to hear me out. Allison Cooper will tear him _apart_. She won't be _good_ for him."

"And you think I'll be better?" Annabeth says softly, and Piper flinches because it's the first time they've ever directly addressed the letters on her wrist. "Piper, I'd be worse."

"So your initials are PJ."

Annabeth doesn't respond.

"You wouldn't be worse," Piper says. "The soulmate system doesn't make mistakes."

"Tell that to my parents."

"They outgrew it. That doesn't make the system wrong. At first, they were in love, because they got married and had you. Then they got older and outgrew each other. That's sometimes what happens. But the soulmate system isn't wrong."

"What if Allison has a PJ too? Some things aren't just coincidences, Piper. She could really be his soulmate."

"She's not," Piper says. "I'm one of his closest friends. I know Percy. She'll seem right for a while, but she's not. They'll begin to grate soon, because they're just not right."

"Then all we need to do is wait."

"That's not what I'm worried about. Percy is going to be so high off the idea of someone loving him that he won't see the signs. It'll be a long time until he realises, and there's a lot of space in a long time for mistakes to happen. Allison will slip up, and it will hurt Percy bad."

"Me telling Percy I'm his soulmate won't change anything, Piper," Annabeth says softly.

"I know." Piper sighs. " _God_ , Annabeth, I know, I just hate it."

Tentatively, Annabeth walks over to her and puts her arms around her. She's no good with sympathy – she's normally the one wreaking the havoc, you know, tearing down buildings, being a good metaphorical Godzilla – but Piper doesn't appear to care. She latches onto her like a safety blanket.

"He's going to get hurt," Piper whispers.

"I know," Annabeth says. "But we all are, eventually."

"Not Percy."

"Even Percy. It's part of being human."

Piper sighs, like she knew the answer all along. "I hate being human sometimes."

"I get you." Annabeth pulls back. "But we can't really do anything about that now. We're going have to watch him fall in and out of love and then we're going to have to help him in the aftermath and we _will_ do that, won't we?"

Piper nods adamantly, before she's even stopped talking. "Absolutely."

"Then you've got nothing to worry about. We all need to get a bit battered sometimes to survive the real world."

Piper smiles, a little half-hearted. "Poetic."

"I try." Piper's smile falters a little so Annabeth grips her shoulders and looks at her in the eyes. "He'll be fine, Piper. I promise you. Maybe not during it, but he'll make it out alive. He's come this far, hasn't he?"

"I guess."

"Allison Cooper's always been the nicest."

"That's not saying a lot, Annabeth. Every one of those girls is ruthless."

Annabeth tries for a joke. "Even me?"

" _Especially_ you. Well, not so much anymore, but you were _dangerous_. And all of those girls looked up to you, for some reason."

"My fantastic cuticles."

"You pick your cuticles, you animal, but that's not even the point. If you were their role model God knows how they've turned out to be. You were a bit of a psychopath, Annie, and I mean that with all the love and care in the world because actually after a bit of affection you scrub up quite nice. But you were brutal. And I learnt to deal with it because we weren't friends and I took nothing you said to heart because why should I have cared about anything you did to me? But Allison's Percy's soulmate, and that's deadly, because she's close to him and he loves her." She pauses, deflating. "Not many people figure it out, but you're smart, so that's why I was at first scared about letting you near Percy. It's why we all were. But you know that it's not the fact that he only has six Marks that makes him vulnerable, don't you?"

Annabeth nods.

Piper runs a hand through her damp hair and sighs. "It's the fact that he's just so aware of it," she says. "You know that he falls a little bit in love with everyone he meets. It's just a Percy thing. And it's vice versa, I suppose, because look at you, you're practically soulless and he's already made history. He loves everyone on his arm. He loves them so, so much, because they're the only people he's got. And that's _dangerous_ , Annie."  
Annabeth already knows where this going. She swallows.

"He's gonna love Allison just that little bit more, because she's his soulmate, and he loves the idea of having someone who will unconditionally love _him_ , but if she's even half the person you were I don't even want to know what's gonna happen to him."

"He'll be okay," Annabeth says, but even she's not sure she believes it.

Because the thing is, Piper is _right_. Annabeth was terrifying. She still can be. She's just learnt that in order to get through life you can't just manipulate people. And without a shadow of a doubt she was better than every single girl in that group. But she's grown up and so have those girls, and Allison was the nicest but, next to Annabeth, she was also the _deadliest_. She was almost Annabeth's apprentice. She's seen how Annabeth works, learnt the tricks of the trade and how to get people to break, but she's not dumb, because growing up in a group like that you learn your own things.

Annabeth was better then them because she was smarter. But Allison is also smart, and she has her own knowledge and also everything Annabeth taught her.

If Percy's not careful, he's soon going to be trapped in the bullring in a red suit. He's already hanging by a thread. Allison won't hesitate to rip him to shreds.

God, Annabeth hopes he'll make it out alive.

* * *

 **a/n if you read to the end i love you (and there's more to come too gosh can you imagine)**

 **please tell me what you thought! pt2 should be up on sunday! i love you guys x**


	2. but with you i'd dance

It's movie night at Percy's, and Percy has news.

He's been wanting to tell Piper and Thalia about Allison ever since they arrived. Piper's been a little subdued, although Percy thinks that may be due to the all-nighters she's been pulling on her art and design project, but Thalia is as excitable as always, bouncing around like a hyper child. He's not sure when's the best time to drop the bombshell, so he keeps quiet all throughout dinner, and only opens his mouth when Thalia is squatting by the DVD player, going through all of his CDs, and Piper is squashed up next to him with a bowl of cereal.

"Guys?" he says.

Thalia doesn't turn around. "Mm?"

"I've got some news."

Piper turns to look at him. So does Thalia. She furrows her eyebrows. "What news?"

He takes a deep breath. "I found my soulmate."

Thalia's eyes almost pop out. " _What_?"

"That's crazy," Piper says, slightly unenthusiastically. "I never saw that coming."

"Who is it?" Thalia demands. "Is she nice? Does she go to this school?"

Percy beams. "It's Allison Cooper."

And then the room falls silent.

Thalia's ecstatic expression becomes a little pinched. "A–Allison Coper?"

"Wow," Piper says weakly. "Such a surprise."

"Your soulmate is Allison Cooper?" Thalia asks in disbelief.

Percy frowns. "What's wrong with Allison Cooper?"

Piper hurriedly cuts in before Thalia can start listing reasons. "It's not an insult, Percy," she soothes, and Percy's hand twitches because how the hell does she _know_. "It's just– surprising."

"Why?"

"Well." Piper looks extremely awkward.

"Allison Cooper is not your type," Thalia says. "At all."

"Oh yeah? And what _is_ my type, then?"

"Not Allison Cooper, that's for sure. I was thinking someone a little different. Blonde, maybe. Grey eyes. Nice smile. Called Annabeth. Perhaps."

Piper sighs. "Oh, dear Lord."

Percy closes his eyes in frustration. "Why does everyone think Annabeth is my soulmate?"

Piper opens her mouth, presumably to say something kind and thoughtful, but before she can Thalia says, "Uh, maybe because she isn't a giant _trashbag_?"

"Allison isn't a _trashbag_!"

"That latex number she wore yesterday wasn't really helping the cause," Piper says, but when Percy glares at her she shoves a spoonful of cereal in her mouth and mumbles, "But I'm sure she's nice."

"Come on, Perce," Thalia says. "You can't seriously tell me you think Allison Cooper is your soulmate."

"Why not?" Percy challenges. "Why wouldn't she be? Do you think I'm not good enough for her? Oh, what a joke, loser Jackson thinks he's worthy of being the soulmate of someone like Allison Coper?"

"Don't be _daft_ , Percy," Thalia says. "It's not like that at all, don't put words in my mouth. It's just– you two are so _different_. You seriously think you're gonna be able to learn to love someone who moves in eight billion different directions to you?"

"Me and Annabeth are different, too."

"Not as much as you're trying to convince yourself you are. I mean, come _on_ , Percy. Have you ever even looked at Allison Cooper?"

Percy feels himself go hot all over. "As a matter of fact, yes, I have, actually! We bumped into each other in the hallway and we accidentally knocked each other's books out of each other's hands. On the same day that my soulmate Mark showed up."

Thalia shakes her head. "Something isn't right, Percy, and you know it."

"You're just jealous."

Piper looks up from her cereal. Her eyes flit between the two of them like she's watching a tennis game.

Thalia laughs mirthlessly. " _Jealous_? Of what, the fact that your terrible reasoning is going to put you in a toxic relationship that your insecurities won't let you escape? Right, that's it."

Percy stares at her. "Why can't you just be happy for me?"

"Because you've got it _wrong_!"

"You don't know that!" Percy cries desperately. "How could you _know_ that? For all you know I could _need_ someone like Allison Cooper!"

"But you don't," Thalia says, "because you need someone like Annabeth Chase. Allison isn't going to do _anything_ for you. You think she'll give two figs about your anxiety? You'll be like a charity case."

Piper begins to look worried. "Thalia, stop it."

Thalia ignores her. That's always been one of her weaknesses: her pig-headedness just won't stop interfering. She doesn't have a filter, isn't able to process emotion until she's stretched it too far. And Percy burns. "Oh, and Annabeth will be any different?"

"Yes!" Thalia cries. "Percy, open your eyes! Look, okay, Allison Cooper probably isn't the Anti-Christ, I'll admit I was wrong, but with people like that people like _you_ fly straight over their heads! She doesn't understand it, she can't! Yeah, okay, she'll love you, whatever, but she'll drag you out to every party she gets invited to because she wants to show you off and because you're too _terrified_ to ever say no to anyone you'll dope yourself up on your meds until you're as high as a kite so you'll be able to stand it all and I'm not gonna sit here and watch you live your life either drugged up so badly you can barely walk or so low you can't get out of bed!"

"Thalia, shut up!" Piper shouts, terrified.

The thing is, Thalia's right. But Percy is too terrified of being run under the wheels if he stops now so he keeps tumbling downhill. "You don't know anything! I'm not four years old, I don't need to be looked after!"

"Yes, you do! You're a stubborn little brat who gets so scared of talking in public you either faint or choke, of course you need someone to look after you! And sorry to break this to you, but Allison Cooper isn't going to give you that because she can barely take care of herself!"

"You can't be so sure that Annabeth will."

"I kind of can." Confrontation isn't new to Thalia – she experiences it almost every day. She doesn't keep her mouth shut at school and that gets her into a fair number of spats with other kids who have egos too fragile to be damaged by the likes of Thalia Grace, so she sits effortlessly undisturbed on the sofa, her legs spread out, her arms propped on the backrest, because this is familiar territory to her. But she's poised, and she's alert, and Percy knows that she's never been so serious before in her life. "Annabeth has learnt. She may be a dickbag but she's not _that_ much of a dickbag."

"I don't _like_ Annabeth that way, though."

"Maybe not," Thalia says. "And you don't have to go with her. But please, for the love of God, wake up and see some sense. Allison Cooper is the wrong person for you."

Percy clenches and unclenched his jaw. Piper has put her spoon down and she's looking at him, almost imploringly, her wide eyes confused and expectant. Thalia looks the most relaxed, because he and Piper have spines like broomsticks, and she's just lounging on the sofa in her socks like she owns the place, but her eyes hold weight.

But she's wrong. Annabeth is not his soulmate.

Annabeth and Allison are almost complete opposites. Annabeth is the undisputed queen of the school – cold, careful, calculating. Everyone is terrified of her, of her ice court and how one look from her steely eyes can cut you into pieces. Allison is the princess, the one who comes in with the summer with a dress of daisies and a twinkly laugh. Annabeth is wrong for Percy in all the ways Allison is right.

She's wrong. Allison is Percy's soulmate and that's that.

Finally, he sighs. "Okay," he says.

He's lying.

Thalia breathes out a sigh of relief. "My God," she says, closing her eyes in gratitude. "That's the most reassuring thing you've said all week."

* * *

Percy comes to lunch with Allison Cooper in tow.

It's safe to say that absolutely no one sees it coming. As soon as he appears in the distance, Annabeth sees Nico perk up, ready to show him the same article he's shown all of them, about an alligator that climbed into a tourist boat and ate one of the passengers ("Nico that's gross" "it's _interesting_! Look, it even links to the Facebook page where one of them livestreamed the entire thing!"), and then he rather confusedly deflates, so Annabeth turns to see what's the matter and then suddenly her whole life flashes before her eyes.

That's _Allison Cooper. Holding Percy's hand_.

Thalia closes her eyes in frustration. "Literally, _what_ did I say."

Grover glances at her, almost mournfully. "You know?"

"Know what?" Nico asks.

"Nothing," Thalia says.

The two of them walk up to the table together. Up close, Allison is even prettier. Annabeth had never really ever talked to Allison – she was one of the Girls. She wasn't by any means unpopular – she made it into all the sleepovers, and Annabeth had probably faux-confided in her at one point and she'd also probably dabbed away her steaking mascara in the toilets at a point, too (they all looked the same, all right, and she did the same thing with so many of them, so what if she gets confused). But she had never remembered her being so beautiful. She remembers the extremely beautiful ones, because they were the ones who probably could have taken the throne.

Huh. Little Ali had a bit of a glow-up. She'd almost be proud if she wasn't clinging onto Percy's hand like a piece of fungus. Honestly, how old is she, three? Does she seriously need to hold onto him at every moment?

"Percy," Piper says, her voice a bit strained. "Hey."

"Hey!" Percy plops down in his seat, and Allison gets in next to him. Annabeth almost bursts a vein because that's where _she_ normally sits, but she doesn't think ripping out the hair of Percy's soulmate would go down very well, so she just sits there, seething. "Uh, guys. This is Ali."

Allison smiles at them, widely. Annabeth's eye twitches. "Hey! It's really nice to meet you guys, Percy's told me so much about you." She turns to Piper. "You're Piper, right? Percy's said so much. You seem great. Also, I love your hair."

Piper actually blushes. "Oh?" she says, and she seems genuinely flattered, and Annabeth wants to scream because that's so _obviously_ a con move _why is everyone so in love with her_. "Wow, I mean– thank you. Yours, too."

Allison beams. Annabeth wants to break something.

Okay, so. Listen.

Annabeth isn't jealous or anything. She's quite above jealousy – thinks it's childish and mundane and irrelevant and stupid and there's really no need or space for it in everyday life. And there's nothing to be jealous of. Annabeth has seen Allison's PJ, and she's seen Percy's AC, and she knows that the universe doesn't make mistakes. If that's how it's meant to be then that's how it's meant to be.

It's just– she just can't quite shake the feeling that Allison isn't right.

Besides, even if she's wrong, it's not as if she's acting on pure impulse. Everything about this is weird. And _wrong_. It's just all a little funny, in that awkward forced kind of way where it's not really funny at all. Like. What kind of parallel universe is this?

Slightly sulkily, Annabeth watches Allison take a sip of her mango smoothie. A parallel universe where people like Allison Cooper sit with them, apparently.

Jason clears his throat. It's been uncomfortably quiet for a while now. "So," he says. "Allison."

Allison beams at him. God, she's _so_ pretty, Annabeth notices with a scowl. She can see why Percy likes her. She's all glowy and beautiful and she's got long delicate fingers and pedicured toes and Annabeth kind of wants to scream because she's everything she's not and it's so unfair so instead she curls her own stubby fingers into fists and glares down at her Chucks where underneath the canvas are her own unpedicured toes and okay maybe she's a tiny bit jealous _whatever_ , okay.

"You're Percy's soulmate, huh?" Thalia demands rudely.

Piper tries to kick her and instead kicks Annabeth.

If Allison notices the hostility in Thalia's voice she doesn't say anything. She spears her lettuce leaf and twirls it on her fork, seemingly blissfully ignorant. "It appears so," she says, and she gives Percy a shy smile that he returns and oh yes there's that funny feeling in Annabeth's stomach again.

She coughs, trying to get rid of it. Must be heartburn. Or Leo's fajitas.

Thalia laces her fingers. "What are your intentions with Percy?"

"Thalia," Percy warns. "Come on."

"It's all right, Percy." Allison rubs his thigh. She sighs and pulls at the end of her ponytail. "Well," she says thoughtfully, "I guess I just want to make him happy."

Annabeth frowns down at the table. It's so unfair. Allison Cooper isn't even unlikeable. She's sweet and funny and pretty and she's probably perfect for Percy. It even says so on her wrist.

It would be so much easier if she was a cow. If she treated Percy like crap and made fun of his anxiety and his Marks and talked down at him like he was nothing. But she doesn't. It's only been a few minutes and she seems wonderful. Annabeth can't find one flaw except the green monster sitting on her shoulder called jealousy.

She looks up. She and Jason are now in avid discussion about something or other and Percy is looking at her like she hung the stars but Thalia doesn't seem to be as smitten. In fact, it's quite the opposite. She's glaring at her like she had done something to personally offend her.

Annabeth nudges her. "Hey," she says in a low voice, so Allison won't hear her. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Thalia."

Thalia huffs. She's still looking at Allison and Percy. "There's just something about her," she mumbles. "I don't like it."

She says it so solemnly that despite herself Annabeth laughs. "You say it like you're afraid she's a serial killer."

"She may as well be, with those talons. Look how long her nails are!"

"They're all the range these days. She's just keeping up with the latest fads."

Annabeth isn't sure why she's defending her.

"Something's not right about her," Thalia grumbles. "She's a two-faced sneaky little cow."

"Thalia!" Annabeth stares at her in alarm. She knows that it takes Thalia a while to get used to new people, especially when they're of the same breed of Allison Cooper (as in alarmingly gorgeous with a wardrobe of high waisted jeans and an assortment of clinking bracelets), but she's never been so venomous before.

"I'm not wrong, Annabeth."

"She seems perfectly nice."

"Yeah, yeah, so everyone's been saying." Thalia eyes up the couple again. There's something she's not telling her. "Look at her. Can you see the way she's looking at Percy? She's like a mountain lion."

"Maybe that's the way happy couples look at each other. You don't know."

Thalia scoffs. "What, looking at your soulmate like you want to tear him to bits, and not in the sexy way? Yeah, right."

Annabeth twists her mouth uncomfortably. The thing is, she almost kind of agrees, but the other thing is that Thalia being prickly is all part of her appeal. It's almost expected for her to be cold and cautious about new people. But if Annabeth starts agreeing, then she's the bad guy, and the last thing she wants is for Percy to be unhappy with her because she's a bit jealous.

Oh yeah, she admits it. She's _jealous_. So what. Character development.

"Do–" She pauses, almost afraid to speak. Thalia turns to look at her. "Do you think she's really his soulmate?"

Thalia sighs. "I don't know, Chase," she says. "Not really, I guess."

It's nice to hear someone else aside from Piper say it. She lets out a small sigh of relief.

Thalia notices. "You too, huh?" she says, with a mirthless laugh.

"Yeah." Annabeth hesitates, and then rolls up her sleeve. She keeps her arm in her lap so no one else sees. "I mean. I've also got this, so I'm a little biased, but it's okay."

Thalia stares at it. "Are you _serious_?"

"I know, I know."

"No, you don't. Can you read? You know what that says."

"I can't ruin this for him."

Thalia stares at her like she's gone barking. "Uh, yes you can? In fact, if it bothers you that much, I'd happily do it."

"He's _happy_ , Thalia," Annabeth says desperately. "I can't ruin that for him, even if she's the wrong person. Just give him this."

Thalia looks at her for a long time. "You know," she says, after a pause, "I did think it was you at first."

"Yeah?"

"Percy wouldn't hear a word of it."

"Doesn't surprise me." Annabeth sighs. "Look, Grace. Please just– promise you won't say anything to him, okay? I know Ali isn't who you wanted for him, but he's happy, even if it will only last a small while. And I've just become friends with him. If I do this to him everything will become so uncomfortable and awkward and– I can't. I've got too much at stake."

Thalia stares at her, long and hard. She's got intense eyes, so it's hard for Annabeth to hold her gaze. She looks down at her lap.

"Fine," she says. "Fine, whatever."

* * *

The thing is, that probably would have been it.

They now all know that Percy has a soulmate. Annabeth isn't sure of many of their stances about the whole situation, but she does know that Thalia hates Allison with a burning passion and Piper is a little more civil and pleasant but feels no nicer about her. Nico doesn't seem to particularly care, because at the end of the day he shows Percy his stupid alligator article and that's what matters ("that's– actually kind of gross" "why does everyone keep _saying_ that?") but Annabeth knows Grover isn't too sure. She doesn't think he particularly minds Allison herself so much, and it's rather just the fact that when they start to grate, like they inevitably will because they're not actually soulmates, Percy will be heartbroken, that hurts him.

But they love Percy, and everyone would all shove a chopstick through their eyeballs before they say anything about it to him.

Except Thalia.

"I'm telling you, Perce," she says, cramming salad in her mouth. "She ain't good for you."

Percy's face becomes pinched. "Would you just _stop_?" he asks, his voice tight.

"Yeah, come on, Thals," Jason says. "Just leave it."

"I can't," Thalia says honestly. "Not if you're going to keep driving me crazy with all this Allison talk. I _told_ you, she–"

"Well, maybe I don't care what you think!" Percy cries. "Did _that_ ever cross your mind?"

Annabeth knows manipulation. Percy's not doing it well. Thalia's face remains impassive; that didn't hurt her. "If your doctor told you that you've got a tumour and the only thing that would cure it would be to get an operation to have it removed," she says, "you'd sure as hell get that operation, regardless of whether or not you and the doctor are friends. I'm trying to help you not your heart _stepped_ on, why can't you just see that?"

Percy flounders. "I'm just trying to live my life," he says, his voice almost hopeless. "Why do you have to try and control my every _move_?"

"Contr– Percy, I'm trying to _help_ you!"

"Some help! All you've done is _insult_ and _belittle_ me like I'm a _child_ and then tell me my soulmate is a psychotic dickbag!"

Thalia stares at him for a few moments longer before shaking her head and standing up. "Unbelievable," she says, half to herself. "Screw this, I'm not taking this anymore."

Annabeth glances over at Percy. His face is unreadable, but his hands are curled into fists on his lap. It takes almost everything in her not to reach over and straighten them out, maybe lace them with her own.

 _Shut up, Annabeth._

"I'll be out in the courtyard, if any of you get sick of listening to all this crap Percy's talking," Thalia says. "I'm not gonna stay here."

She starts to walk away. They all watch her go. No one rushes to stand up to chase after her, because this isn't unusual. There are always stupid spats and Thalia is surprisingly touchy and also she knows when she's about to be punched, so this is not the first time she's made herself scarce. No one's bothered. They'll all fix it, as they always do. Thalia doesn't have a filter and Percy gets a bit emotional when people yell at him, and a few tears will probably be shed but they'll hug it out after lunch and everything will be as right as rain and that's just the way things work.

This isn't uncommon. This is regular.

But then Percy looks down at his lap and mutters, "While you're out there you better start digging. Maybe you'll find a life there somewhere, buried next to your mom" and suddenly Annabeth knows this is much more than a petty fight because you don't bring up something like that in an innocent game. That's when it goes from play fighting to fighting to the death.

The entire table falls silent. Thalia freezes, but she doesn't turn around. Pride is a sickly thing. Her shoulders square, and then she takes off again, twice as fast. She's angry.

Jason stares at Percy in scathing disbelief. He doesn't say anything, but his expression is enough; shaking his head in disgust, he picks up his bag and takes off after his sister, shouting, "Thalia, wait!"

No one speaks for a solid five seconds.

"You shouldn't have done that," Piper says.

Percy sets his shoulders back, a bit uncomfortably. "Well, she shouldn't have talked crap about Allison."

Piper stares at him. "Are you _serious_? You think because she said something stupid about Ali you have the right to talk to her like that?"

"She's my soulmate, I'm not gonna let her _treat_ her like that!"

"That's just Thalia, Percy!" Piper cries. "She doesn't think before she speaks! She's got no filter and sometimes that backfires but that doesn't mean she'd ever, ever say anything that would purposely hurt any of us, least of all you. That was under the belt, Percy, and you know it."

"She deserved it."

It hits them all like a smack in the face. Nico stares at him. " _Dude_."

"Don't be stupid, Perce, come on," Grover tries.

Percy doesn't correct himself. He stares down at his food.

Piper tries again. "Go after her," she says. " _Apologise_. You can't do that to your friend."

"If she was really my friend she wouldn't have said what she did."

The bomb hits and everything implodes. Piper inhales sharply.

And that's when Annabeth steps in.

"And if you were hers, you wouldn't have either," she says coolly.

Finally, he looks up to meet her eyes. She can't read his expression – he's got millions of emotions running across his face.

Piper was right – she _was_ a bit of a psychopath, a bit of a control freak, a bit of a nightmare. And she's changed, she has. But she still knows all the tricks. An artist never forgets his trade. "If you think that's how you can get away with treating your friends," she says, "you're wrong. You of all people should know that. You can't use your sob story to poke holes in everyone else's now. We're all you have, and if you're going to abuse that and think that no matter how badly you treat us we'll stay with you because _poor little Jackson he needs some support_ you are severely mistaken. Yeah, it's a bit of a tricky situation for you, but it's also a tricky situation for everyone else, and if you keep acting like this you're not gonna have any friends left."

Percy stares at her. He swallows, and she watches his throat move.

"I'm serious," she says. "And this is coming from me, who _knows_. It's lonely. You're not built for that. These guys are all you've got. Don't burn your bridges when you're on an island."

With that, she picks up her bag and stands to her feet. All of them have never looked so small like this, huddled together, with Percy as the lone outsider. They're all watching him like he's an animal who's about to spring. It's not far off. Percy is a bit like a friendly dog – he'll slobber over you too much and probably get everywhere you don't want or particularly need him to be, but he's harmless. And suddenly he shook off his fur and revealed talons.

 _Kitty's got claws. Who knew._

She supposes she must have always known. But Percy is known for holding everything he has close to his heart, and also on his sleeve. Why he'd intentionally frighten away one of his friends is just– baffling.

Annabeth heads out the lunch room. Whatever. It'll probably all be fixed by tomorrow. Just they wait – she knows almost as soon as they come in Percy will retreat to them with his tail between his legs. She can almost see it.

* * *

But it doesn't turn out like that.

They all join for lunch, and then they all turn, as if expecting Percy to materialize there.

He doesn't.

Later, when Annabeth gets up to get water, she spots him across the cafeteria. He's sitting with Allison, and he's got an arm around her shoulders. It hurts more than Annabeth would like to admit.

She comes back with a cup of water, and it appears everyone else at the table has noticed where Percy is, too, because they're all looking over. Piper in particular has a very special look on her face, and if it were any other circumstance Annabeth would have laughed because her angry face always happens to look like she's constipated, but she knows that really wouldn't have helped, so she zips her lip and slides into her chair.

"So that's it," Piper says. "Just like that, then. Leaving us in the dust with his glitzy new crowd."

Thalia scowls across the room at him. "Good riddance, I'd say," she mutters.

"You don't mean that."

"I sure as hell mean that. Don't look at me like that, McLean, that boy has me pissed beyond belief and I'm not gonna pretend just because he's fragile that he hasn't. We could have talked this out like adults but he ran away, like he always does."

"Come on, Thals," Grover says desperately. "That's not fair."

"What ever is?" Thalia grumbles, but she doesn't say anything more, just aggressively shoves her fork through the centre of her burger. Grover just stares despairingly at his enchilada. Annabeth knows he hates arguing, almost as much as Percy does. It's the type of vibe he's got going on. He's all about saving the wildlife and going green and peace and love and forgiveness and all that rubbish.

This must be killing him. It's killing them all. Annabeth can feel her soulmate Mark searing into her skin under her sleeve.

"He'll come back," Nico says firmly. "He always does. Besides, that girl has no substance. She's like a pack of crisps. She looks great and you kinda salivate over her for a day, and then you realise there's actually, like, nothing to her except air – or in her case, hair – get it, 'cause– like, it rhymes – so you move on and have something more worthwhile. Like a pizza."

"She may have no substance but she has boobs," Thalia says. "And that's all a straight guy really needs."

"Yeah, but this isn't just any straight guy," Grover says. "This is Percy."

Thalia sighs.

"Is Percy even a boob man?" Nico wonders. "I always thought he was an ass man."

"He's a boob man," Annabeth says. "Drew Tanaka passed us the other day with her boobs practically out and he couldn't help but stare."

"To be fair," Piper says, "neither could you."

"Well, I couldn't help it. I was so afraid she'd breathe wrong or something and they'd all just– pop out, like balloons."

"Why are we having this conversation?" Jason says. "We need to focus on the true matter here."

"Right," Thalia says. "The fact that he is now public enemy number one."

Piper gives her a look. "He's not public enemy number one."

"Yes he is. He's at least _siding_ with the enemy, in case."

"Maybe it's for the better," Annabeth tries, but she can tell that she's not fooling anyone. "I mean, you all hated me, and now we're all friends. Maybe it'll be the same with Allison."

"Oh, I still hate you," Thalia says amicably. "I've just learnt to control my disgust."

Jason rolls his eyes. "Sure."

"But even if I did feel a smidgen of compassion towards you," Thalia continues, "which I obviously don't, because you still repulse me–"

"Thanks."

"It's my utmost pleasure. But the real thing is you're not actually that bad. Sure, at the beginning you were a menace, and every day was a new struggle to not throttle you, but deep down you're actually as awful as we had all initially expected. And I think we all knew that, and out of you and Allison you're the one who's actually had a history with doing stuff to us. Allison doesn't feel right for Percy. Whatever he thinks is happening between them in going to crash and burn and if he keeps on insisting on treating us like this it's going to be his fault that he has no friends to help him."

The bell rings.

Annabeth sighs and stands up, slinging her bag over her shoulder. "I'll see you guys later," she says. "Whitby asked me to see him before class, so I need to go."

"Don't do anything I wouldn't," Piper says.

"Like what, get university offers?"

There is complete silence.

And then Nico starts guffawing. He crows in delight over Piper's shocked face, as she stares at her with an expression of both surprise and humour. Her hands come up to cup her heart. "That _hurt_!"

"I mean, it's half true."

Piper rests the back of her hand on her forehead and slumps dramatically against Jason, who, like the good honourable boyfriend he is, soothingly strokes her hair and tells her that Annabeth is nothing but jealous.

Which isn't– _incorrect_ , per say, in the grand scheme of things, but not necessarily about this current situation, so he's technically wrong. Annabeth tells him as much.

"Yes, you are," he says. "You're jealous because she's prettier and nicer than you'll ever be."

Piper mutters, "you tell 'em, babe" from where she's buried in his armpit.

"Whatever." Annabeth starts to walk away. "I need to go."

"That's right, Chase!" Piper shouts. "Walk away!"

"La la la!" Annabeth trills.

"Jealous!"

Annabeth laughs and heads out the cafeteria, into the hallway. She needs to head to her locker first, to collect some papers she didn't hand in the day before, but when she turns the corner to get there she sees Percy, Allison and a group of Allison's friends standing around his locker, which is only a few doors down from hers.

She swallows. She shouldn't be scared because once upon a time she had every single one of these people on a chess board, but she's not sure if she has that power anymore. Besides, Percy's there. Even if she does, even if they see her and their eyes fill with something akin to fear and respect and awe, Percy knows that she's no higher up than any of them.

She sets her shoulders back and takes a deep breath. It's just some people. She can do this.

Annabeth heads up, a little tentatively, to her locker. She's hoping none of them actually notice her, but because the universe obviously favours her so much she's only just opened her locker when she hears, "Omigod, Annabeth!"

Annabeth grimaces, hidden behind her locker door, and then closes it, smiling at everyone. "Hey."

Percy smiles at her, almost shyly. Just that enough is enough to melt her icy mood – until she sees his hand intertwined with Allison's, and then she almost tears the door right off her locker.

"We haven't spoken to you in _ages_!" one of the girls gushes. Lacey, Annabeth thinks. She's one of the girls at the bottom of the food chain. Annabeth never minded her – she was kind of sweet, in a way. "Where were you?"

"Careful, sweetie," Drew Tanaka says dryly. "Your desperation is showing."

Some girls titter, and Lacey recoils, her face red. Annabeth cocks an eyebrow.

"Drew," she says. "So good to see you again. Did you get lip fillers while I was gone or did they just miraculously fill out again, like they did last year before the Spring Dance?"

Someone chokes out a badly disguised laugh. Drew's eyes tighten. "How does it feel," she snaps, "hanging out with your new charity case friends?"

"Amazing. It's so wonderful not having to lower my IQ to hold a conversation now."

"And hey," Allison interrupts. "One of those charity case friends is my soulmate, so you play nice."

Some of the girls laugh, and Percy goes a bit red. Annabeth catalogues the insult, wonders why Percy didn't, but all she can do is focus on Allison. Frankly, she nailed it. She has the potential to even be as good as her. She won't, of course, because no one ever is, but she's not daft. She's taught herself how to control the strings and she'd doing a damn fine good job at it.

It makes Annabeth both weirdly proud and absolutely _terrified_. The difference between Annabeth and Allison is that Annabeth knows how to control it, and she's smothered it now. You can't have real genuine friends when you can play the game like that. If Allison learns all Annabeth's tricks her relationship with Percy is going to hurt even more than she initially thought.

Oh God, Percy is in the way of an oncoming _truck_.

Drew looks like she'd happily take out Annabeth's eyes with her long nails, but she composes herself. "Well," she says, her voice taut. "I don't really see any need for you to be here, so if I were you I'd buzz off."

"Actually," Annabeth says, "I need to get some folders from my locker. You know, to show Mr Whitby so he can help me formulate my college application. I wouldn't expect many of you to understand."

Drew almost growls. Behind her, Percy's kind face contorts in confusion. Annabeth doesn't blame him. Out on the field, she's a completely different person.

"Actually," he pipes up, a little quietly. "Can I, uh, talk to you, for a second?"

"Oh." Annabeth is quite pleasantly surprised. "Sure."

Percy smiles at Allison and extracts his hand, heading over to her. Allison doesn't appear to look very pleased, which fills Annabeth with an irrational sense of pride that she immediately squashes because no, she's his soulmate, we don't do that. Still. Percy wants to talk to her, even after everything she said yesterday.

That kind of bond can't be broken. She should have done this whole friendship gig a long time ago.

When he comes next to her she asks, "What's up?" but he just takes her wrist and leads her gently down the hallway.

"Not here," he says.

Annabeth's heartbeat quickens. _What?_ "Okay," she says.

Unfortunately, as it turns out, Percy doesn't take her away to a secluded area to confess his undying love. In fact, it's quite the opposite. As soon as they're out of earshot of everyone, he turns to her expectantly, a kind of nervous, awkward smile on her face.

"What's up?" Annabeth asks.

"Do you like Allison?"

Annabeth reels back like she's been slapped.

"What?"

"Do you like her?" Percy says, and suddenly his smile isn't nervous and awkward anymore, it's tense and strained. It always was. This was never a happy conversation. "Don't lie to me, Annabeth, please."

"I mean–" Annabeth flounders. This is so _uncomfortable_ , _why is he asking this_. "She's– nice, I guess – pretty? I mean– why?"

"Is– the way you treated them back then. Is that how it used to be?"

Annabeth smiles wryly. "That's my tragic backstory," she says.

"You're mean, Annabeth."

"It's a cutthroat game, Percy, I had to stay afloat somehow."

"By tearing them down?"

"Your precious Allison isn't much better," she says, and she's suddenly aware how sour she sounds. "Why didn't you stop her? She literally called our friends charity cases!"

"She didn't mean it."

"She was just as genuine as any of us, Perce. Come on, you had to have noticed."

"I mean–" Percy looks desperate. "Is she wrong?"

Annabeth can't believe he just said that. She gapes at him. "Percy, _seriously_."

"Look at us, Annabeth! She's right! We're the trash at the bottom of the barrel. We don't mean anything, _none_ of us, except Jason, and he only stays because he's got Piper and Thalia."

"You can't be serious. Do you hear the words you're _saying_?"

"You know it too, Annabeth."

"I know it because I'm a mean girl, Percy, and I grew up surrounded by opinions like that. Those are your best friends. What, now that you've got pretty glamorous Ali Cooper as your soulmate with her glitzy friends you think you can drop us and say stuff like that?"

"Thalia ruined my friendship the moment she said what she said."

"And you're just hammering nails into the coffin. These guys have the sustainability of _plastic_. You think you'll get real friends out of them? There's a reason I had them for years and my Marks stayed grey."

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe _you_ were the problem?"

My God. "Shockingly, yes, the thought crossed my mind once or twice. But you're making a mistake if you think you'll ever get anywhere with people like this. Fine, okay. Have Allison as a soulmate, I really don't care. When you get hurt that's your fault. But don't drop your friends like this, because they're the only reliable things you have in your life and cutting them off will be suicide."

"So you don't like Allison."

She's really got nothing else to lose. "No, I'm not her biggest fan."

"Why can't you just accept I'm _happy_?" Percy asks softly.

Annabeth presses her lips together. "I am." It hurts to say.

"You've done a great job of showing it."

She sighs. "Look, Percy, I'm pleased for you. I am. Honestly. It's wonderful to see you so happy, it's the least you deserve." She opens her mouth, and then closes it. She's not sure if she can speak.

Percy watches her. "But?"

"Something feels wrong," Annabeth confesses. "She– she just doesn't seem _right_..."

Her voice trails off when she sees Percy's jaw tighten. "So everyone keeps saying," he says in a cold voice.

"It's just a feeling, Percy, I mean no disrespect–"

"Then you'd just keep your mouth shut!" Percy throws his hands up. "Everyone keeps saying they don't mean to hurt my feelings but they do, they just do, because if they didn't they wouldn't say it!"

"She just doesn't feel right for you!"

"Oh, yeah? And who is right for me, _you_? Get a _grip_ , Annabeth. Out of everyone you're the least likely to be right for me."

The PJ on her wrist throbs. She cuts it out with the own beat of her heart. "I'm not saying it's me," she says, trying to keep her voice level. "Just– not Allison Cooper."

"And how do you know?" he says. "What on earth can Annabeth Chase know about _feelings_?"

The blow doesn't hurt as much as it should. Finding friendship has both softened and hardened her far beyond something she could ever know.

"Oh, I don't know," she says sarcastically. "Maybe the fact that she looks at you like you're a stray puppy and not a person?"

"She doesn't."

Annabeth scoffs. "Well, of course _you'd_ say that."

Percy's eyebrows arch in indignation. "I'm _sorry_?"

"You're in love, Percy. You're in the honeymoon stage and you're wearing your rose-coloured glasses, and you're stuck in this world where Allison Cooper could never be bad and that she's perfect for you. Face it, you idiot, she's not good for you and you _know_ it."

Percy is silent for a few moments. Then he says, quietly, carefully, "She's better for me than you'll ever be."

It's not meant to hurt but Annabeth thinks it's the lowest blow so far. Because she knows he's right.

But she's played this game too long to be ended like this. Fine. If he wants to play dirty she sees how it is. She strides right up to him and presses him up against the locker, crowds him in. His green eyes clear and suddenly he looks terrified, like he would whenever he got higher than her in Biology back when she still tormented Piper. "Listen to me," she says. "You were my first yellow Mark and that meant everything to me. It still does. But you've already made your feelings about me and the rest of our friends pretty clear so I'm going to have zero remorse in saying any of this, so you listen." She grabs the front of his shirt and pushes in even tighter. "If you _think_ ," she hisses, her voice dangerous, "for a _second_ , that any of those people back there will ever love you the way your proper friends love you, you are wrong. They don't like you. They never will. You mean nothing to them. To them, all you are is Allison Cooper's new boyfriend. They don't give two hoots that you're her soulmate. I know those girls, and if you think that just because you can wear this shiny new badge of honour that they'll give you the time of day you're wrong. You're making a mistake if you cut every tie you have. In case you forgot, we're the only people you have. Those people won't love you. They won't protect you. They'll stand you, at most. You're leaving your brick house for a castle made of paper. You better think carefully about what bridges you want to burn because if you're don't you're not going to have any left."

Their faces are so close. She could kiss him.

But she doesn't.

She lets him go and he sags almost immediately, like her weight had been the only thing holding up. He looks a little pathetic like this, leaning against the wall, but the confusion in his eyes has turned to what looks like hatred and if this is what Percy Jackson wants to be then good for him, Annabeth wants no part in it.

"Piper was right," Percy says. "You _are_ a psychopath."

The insult no longer hurts. She cocks an eyebrow. "At least I have respect for myself," she says. "Good luck to you, honestly. I wish you the best."

She walks off with her held high and pretends it doesn't feel like a bullet to the heart.

* * *

 **Three months later**

"Hey, Perce, do you want to go to a party tonight?" Allison asks one day.

Percy purses his lips. "Ali..."

"It's just a small get-together," she says. "Possibly with alcohol. It won't be anything big."

"You know I don't do parties."

"You can barely call this a party. It's– a social gathering."

"I don't really do those either."

Allison sighs unhappily. "Do you do _anything_?"

He frowns, trying not to let his hurt show. "Of course I do! I just– Ali, you _know_ I can't really do lots of people in one place at one time. It's all a bit– overwhelming. I'll probably cry, and-slash-or pass out, and neither of those are great outcomes." She doesn't look any more pleased, so he takes her hands. "I'll do anything you want, but I won't do parties."

She sighs again. "It's just– I'm _proud_ of you, Percy. I want to show you off. If you stay an antisocial little hobbit forever I won't get the chance to do that. Besides, didn't you say something about how to overcome your fear you need to face it head on?"

"Not so head-on that I have a panic attack, Ali. If you want any change it's all baby steps. You know. Slowly. Despacito, and all that jazz. And it's not like– _willing_ antisocialness."

"It kind of is, Percy. I mean, have you ever been to a party before?"

"That's still not willing antisocialness."

"Come on, Percy. We need to break you out your bubble!"

"I'm quite fine in my bubble," Percy says.

"Well, I'm not," Allison says. "Just this one party, Percy, please?"

"No, Ali."

He's proud of himself. Look at him, growing a backbone. He should text Annabeth.

Then he remembers that he can't, not anymore, and he almost kicks himself for thinking of her when he's with Allison, because he's alarmingly doing that a _lot_. It's not– it's not like it's a _big deal_ or anything. Okay, so. Whatever, all right. He may have a teeny tiny crush on Annabeth, but it's not as if it'll ever become anything. And it'll fade, because he's found his soulmate. Apparently it's completely natural to have small irrelevant feelings for another person when you initially meet your soulmate, because you've been without them so long that of course you'll develop misguided feelings towards someone else. He's done his research, late at night, on incognito tabs, so no one will ever find out.

It'll _fade_ , okay. He's got his happy ending. Allison is the girl of his dreams. Annabeth is just the irrelevant side-character who doesn't mean anything in this equation at all. Not one inch.

So maybe a tiny bit at the moment, but she won't in the future, okay. Of that he's adamant.

Allison sighs, but she knows that she's lost this battle. "Okay," she says finally. She goes up on her tiptoes and presses a kiss to his cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay? Text me."

"I'll know if you get flat-out drunk."

She just winks at him and blows a kiss as she struts off. He isn't lame enough to pretend to catch it or whatever, so he just smiles awkwardly and shoves his hands in his pockets as he watches her walk away. She's been curling her hair more recently, and whenever he sees it he's always reminded of the time he walked in on Annabeth with her straighteners, the first and only time he's ever seen her with natural curly hair.

Damn, he's doing it again. He glares at his sneakers, like it's their fault.

It's making things difficult, this whole situation. The friendship one. He hasn't really spoken to anyone since he and Annabeth argued in the hallway, and he won't admit it now because he's made his bed and now he has to lie in it but he does miss them, just a little. Allison is great, don't get him wrong, she's everything he could have ever dreamed of, but her friends are– well. Less than impressive. Percy doesn't agree with Annabeth on most fronts but he will admit, she wasn't– _wrong_ , per say, when she said they had the sustainability of plastic. Because they do. They're about as deep as a spotting tile.

And even though Allison is his dream come true, it's difficult to navigate when you only have one person to rely on. Especially in Percy's situation, because he needs to have several people he trusts around him at all times if he wants to function like a normal human being, and he knows that sometimes Ali gets a bit narked if he's always using her as his crutch.

But he can't help it, because he doesn't have anyone else anymore.

Sometimes when he's at home he lies in his own bed and stares up at the ceiling and wonders _is it all worth it? Was finding his glamourous soulmate worth dumping all of his friends – Grover, Piper,_ Annabeth _?_

He doesn't like to brood too much on it, though. Because if he does he knows at one point the word 'no' is going to flash across his mind and that may just be the worst part.

Still. He's survived this long.

And he's grown, too, in ways he couldn't before. Like, he's now able to say no to people. He's not sure if the fact that that's developed now is a good representation of his relationship with Ali, because it is true that he's had to say no to most of the stuff she's asked him to do, but it's still a valuable life skill to learn. Now when Piper asks him if he's _sure_ he doesn't mind if she has the last pancake he can tell her no, he's not sure, and he _does_ want that pancake.

Then he remembers that he and Piper aren't on speaking terms and this time does nearly punch himself in the face because _dammit_ Percy just forget them.

Whatever. He's probably better off without them. That's what Ali told him. It's been three months. He needs to get over himself.

And them. Mainly them. He needs to get over them.

But also himself, because there must be something wrong with him when only three months into a relationship with his _soulmate_ – his soulmate – he's getting an itch under his skin that he can't shake off.

* * *

"Hey, Annabeth," Piper says one night. "Are you okay?"

Annabeth frowns and rolls over. She and Piper are now nose-to-nose. "Of course, I am, why?"

"Well." Piper shuffles on her back and stares up at the ceiling contemplatively, lacing her fingers over her stomach. "I mean. This whole Percy thing can't be much fun."

"Oh." Annabeth sighs. "Well. That's just life, I suppose."

"Are you okay, though?"

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, it's not as if I actually had a crush on him or anything."

"Right," Piper says, in a voice that says she doesn't believe her at all. "Because that would be ridiculous."

"Yeah."

There's a thoughtful silence.

"I mean," Piper says. "It's not as if there's anything wrong with you having a crush on Percy or anything. You guys _are_ soulmates."

"I don't have a crush on Percy," Annabeth says. She's not sure who she's trying to convince.

Piper hmphs and rolls over. "Well, whatever you say."

They lay in silence for a while.

"I don't," Annabeth says, in a small voice. "Have a crush on Percy."

"I believe you."

"No, you don't."

"You can really hardly blame me."

"Just because we're soulmates doesn't mean we have to like each other."

"That's kind of exactly what being soulmates means."

Annabeth sighs. "Even if I did there's nothing I could do about it, is there? He's got Ali now. They're in love."

"Love is a bit of a stretch."

"Whatever." Annabeth rolls over. "It doesn't matter."

Piper props herself up on her elbow. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay."

Piper waits a few more seconds, before resting back down.

They both lie awake for a long time.

* * *

Percy's kind of feels like falling asleep.

Now, it's simply not that Allison's friends aren't riveting. Because they all are. Honestly. There is nothing Percy would love to hear more than the story of how last night Gary had simply _great_ sex with a cheerleader, or how Britney got so drunk that she threw up all over Amelia's shoes and now they aren't talking because the shoes cost over two hundred dollars and they were brand new. It's just– he's gone from conversations about possible life in outer space and ethical debates about the use of toilet paper to this, and it's kind of a little jarring. And mind-numbing.

The only slightly good thing about it is Ali sitting on his other side, holding his hand. She provides a little more depth to the conversation, although that isn't saying a lot considering they're all thick as brick walls and simply discussing the colours of the rainbow would be more fascinating than them comparing latest lays.

Frankly, if she wasn't there, chatting to him about everything, he probably would have dozed off.

"Perce?" she says, and he comes out of his reverie.

"Sorry, just was thinking."

"Yes, I could tell." She smiles at him, and then squeezes his hand. "So anyway, there's this party that Nancy Bobofit is throwing tonight, and it'd mean a lot to me if you came."

He frowns. "I–I thought you didn't like Nancy."

"Oh, I don't," she says breezily. "But Nancy's parties are always incredible, and she's got a super-rich dad who pays for everything. If you get on her good side she'll invite you to the annual camping trip that she does, with, like, six of her closest friends. I went last year with Madeleine and it's, like. Super bougie."

Ah yes. The other thing.

The parties.

Percy is not a party person at all. He hates them, in fact. On his best days he's not exactly what you'd call a social butterfly, and talking and interacting with people just drains him. He finds it exhausting. Especially if it's with the type of people who attend Nancy Bobofit's parties – some are nice, because some are of the same species as Jason, who's perfect in almost way, but some require so much effort to be around without wanting to strangle someone that it physically hurts. Also, his anxiety is not a kind thing – it lingers him at all times, something Allison doesn't seem to quite fully understand yet. If he's going to go to a party he's going to need a serious crutch to lean on, because swells of new people overwhelm him, and being a crutch is a bit of a full-time job, and Allison already has one of those – talking, dancing, drinking, singing, everything that Percy can't really do.

He's managed to evade the parties up until now ("sorry, Ali, I've got homework" "my mom needs me to help her with some stuff" "uh, dog-walking?") but she's giving him The Look and he knows it's going to be increasingly difficult to get out this one.

"Please, Percy?" she begs, when she sees his hesitation. "All of my friends from Gordon Prep, the school down the road, have been dying to see you, and I'm proud of you! I want to show you off. You're special to me."

Percy's expression falters. He hates it when she does that, because she knows that he can't deny her something like that.

"Ali..." he says, and then sighs. "You know I can't."

"Yes you can!"

"Al, it doesn't really work like that. I need, like. Preparation. And months of it."

"It's a party, not a heart surgery. Come on, I'll be with you every minute. I won't leave you. You'll have loads of fun."

This is a losing battle. He sighs again. "Will anyone I know be there?"

Allison pauses. "I mean. You don't– really know a lot of people, Percy."

Touché.

"Fine. I'll go."

Allison squeals and throws her arms around his neck. "Thank you thank you thank you!" she gushes. She lets him go and beams. "Ah, I'm so happy!" She turns to the rest of the table. "Guess who's coming to Nancy's party tonight!"

One of the guys whom Percy doesn't know whoops. He glances over and sees Annabeth staring at him across the hall. When she catches him, she quickly looks away.

There was something– different in her expression. Simmering. Nostalgic, maybe. Whatever it is, it does something painful to Percy's heart, and he quickly looks at Allison again to get it to stop.

It doesn't.

(When he gets home, he crams his anxiety meds in his pocket and takes one more tablet than it instructs him to. If he wants to make it out this party alive, he's going to need all the help he can get.)

* * *

It becomes kind of a habit after that.

The first party is horrific, but somehow, he manages to keep his head up and not pass out. He tries telling Allison that it's not a situation he kind of ever wants to repeat, but because nothing bad happens she ignores him and convinces him to go to another one. And another. And another.

One night he comes home to see his mom sitting on the sofa with a book. She looks up when he comes in.

"Percy!" she says, looking relieved. "I was so worried, you didn't text me. Where were you?"

He just stares at her.

She frowns. "Percy?"

"Hm? Oh, just Ali's. Don't worry."

But she does worry, and so does he. At night he lies in his bed and stares up at his ceiling and wonders if this is even the right thing. It's not even just the parties anymore – Allison has her fingers in so many pies, she's absolutely everywhere. She knows a guy here and a couple of girls there and her friend from middle school is dating this boy who knows this man and some of the girls on the cheer squad are going out tonight, wanna come?, and Percy says no every single time, but because Percy, I love you, Percy, I'm proud of you, Percy, I want to show you off, she gets him to come to every single event as her plus one. Not everything is awful – sometimes it's nice and harmless, and they'll go out for a pizza with some of the guys from the football team, or some girls will invite them to a movie, and that's nice, and Percy likes that kind of stuff, but most of the time it's just parties and drinking and skinny dipping in ponds and climbing into private property to get high or setting fireworks off the back of cars, and he supposes he can sort of see the beauty in it all, can see why Allison likes it, but he knows he'd much, much rather stay home.

He's caught in an endless catch twenty-two and he doesn't know how to escape. If he completely ditches Allison then she might ditch him, and he can't afford for her to do that now. Not now. He's already lost so much for her, including part of himself, that if she leaves he's not sure he'll be able to cope.

But if he keeps attending all these parties he might not be able to cope for much longer, either. It's already causing his toll. He went through his Xanax twice as fast as he normally does, and he's spending most of his time either high as a kite or suffering the aftermath.

It's slowly killing him, and he kind of doesn't know what to do about it.

One of the turning points happens few weeks later at school. He got almost no sleep last night, because the party Ali had taken him to the night before had only ended sometime around 2am, and his increased dosage of Xanax has caused him to have trouble sleeping at night (insomnia is a common side effect, he's discovered, but it's only kicking in now, and Percy hates it because it's not as if he got enough sleep without it anyway), and he's dead on his feet. The Xanax has also been making him a little weaker, too, so he's trying not to crash into anything, because that would be highly embarrassing.

Also if he fell over he's not sure he'd have the energy to, like, get up, either, so that's also quite worrying.

However, it all seems destined in the end, because he's putting so much attention into not walking into any lockers or falling asleep as he stands that that he accidentally bumps into someone.

He is quick to stutter out an apology, until he looks up and sees exactly who he bumped into.

Thalia only takes a single glance at him before she's rolling her eyes, but Annabeth gets a wry sort of smile across her face. She adjusts her folders in her arms that he had accidentally knocked into disarray and smiles with one half of her face. Sympathetic, almost. At least, Percy thinks. She's still as difficult to read, as always.

"Sorry," Percy mutters, when it's clear all she's going to do is stare at him.

Thalia huffs. He wants to yell at her, cry a bit, maybe give her a hug and plead for forgiveness, but he just stares at his feet and turns them inwards.

"It's okay," Annabeth says, a beat too late.

Thalia makes a start to move forward, and Annabeth almost follows her, but she doesn't. She just tilts her head and furrows her eyebrows. "Hey," she says, almost hesitantly. "Are you, um– okay?"

Percy sniffs, a little proudly, and straightens. "Yeah, 'course."

"You look like crap."

"That's your opinion."

"My God," Thalia mutters, somewhere on the side. "Will you _ever_ extract your head from your arse?"

Annabeth adjusts her books again, her steely eyes staring right into his soul. "Are you sleeping enough?" she asks.

"What are you, my mom?"

"Answer the question, Jackson."

Percy flits his eyes awkwardly. His grip tightens on his books. "Why would you care?" he asks, his voice small. "I thought I wasn't your friend anymore."

Something changes in Annabeth's eyes, but her resolve remains. "You were the one who made that decision, not me," she says. "But when my first ever friend starts wandering around looking like a drug addict zombie I notice."

Even Thalia's snarky smile fades now.

Percy's throat feels tight. "Descriptive," he manages.

"What's up, then?" Annabeth asks. "Girlfriend got you on crack?"

"Your standards of my soulmate really make me happy, you know."

"You're avoiding the question."

"And you're being nosy."

"Since when did you care about being nosy, Jackson?"

He stares at her, swallowing thickly. She doesn't back down.

"I didn't get much sleep last night," he says. "That's all."

She arches an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Percy knows she wants to say more than that, but then the warning bell goes. He arranges his folders in his arms, nods at her curtly, and then steps around her.

It's hard to pretend that it doesn't matter to him. He's been missing them particularly badly recently – he doesn't admit it to Ali, not anymore, because all she'll do is blame it on the medication, or remind him that he's got her now – so just this one interaction has his heart aching, because he wants them back, but he can't. He's sacrificed so much and said so many regrettable things that if he lets go of Ali to get them back he's afraid he'll just end up alone.

* * *

 **Piper** : Annabeth said she saw you today

 **Piper** : she said and I quote you looked like the walking dead

 **Piper** : so as your good friend I decided to step in and take initiative

 **Piper** : what the heck is going on perce

 **Piper** : everyone's worried about you

 **Piper** : you can't just cut us all off like this

 **Piper** : percy?

 **Piper** : percy?

* * *

Has Percy ever mentioned that he hates parties?

Because he really hates parties. He really, really hates parties.

This party is edging towards one of the worst ones he's attended yet. The music is so loud he feels his whole body vibrate with the floor and Ali's managed to coerce a cup of alcohol into his hand. He hates alcohol, always has, and he told her just as much, but she had just sighed at him, like he had disappointed her somehow, and then disappeared into the crowd with her friends.

The air is thick with marijuana and sweat, and somewhere on his left a group of kids from his Maths class are passing around a joint, and on his right Drew Tanaka and a girl with pink hair are doing shots, and it's just so overwhelming he wants to throw up, a little.

It's okay, though. He thinks. He took a lot of Xanax before he left, so his brain is still too sluggish to properly process much except that the music is loud and he's pretty sure there is some less-than-legal drug-involved activities going on. He'll be all right, he reckons.

And then some boy dances past him and accidentally bumps into him, and suddenly the contents of Percy's cup is being spilt down his shirt.

His cheeks burn in mortification. He looks up, wildly, ready to curl into a ball to hide, but the boy has already disappeared, and everyone else is too busy jumping around to song on the overhead stereos to notice. Either that, or they're drunk. Probably a nice mix of both.

Either way, it's saved Percy from being humiliated in front of an entire party and having to live in his bedroom forevermore as a recluse, but he is still standing there with his shirt soaked in beer, or whatever it was in his cup. He plucks at it unhappily, rolling his eyes a little at the misfortune – because of _course_ it's him who gets covered in a drink, right, _of_ _course_ – before deciding to try and find the bathroom to wash off.

It takes a bit of navigating to find. Percy readily decides it is the latter, actually, and everyone is too drunk to do anything but slobber all over each other and dance vaguely in time, so whenever he politely stops someone and asks if they could direct him to the loos they either ignore him or throw up, so he's all on his own. Besides, all the bathrooms that he has found have been filled with snogging couples, and he's beginning to lose hope, because, like, it's Pennsylvania, and exactly how many bathrooms does anyone in Pennsylvania really have, but eventually he does find one unoccupied.

Hallelujah, he thinks to himself. He tries to switch on the tap and finds his hands are shaking too much to even get a firm hold on the knob. He frowns at them.

Maybe he's been taking too much Xanax.

After a while, he manages to get the tap on, and awkwardly stretches the hem of his shirt into the sink. He realizes the most effective way of going about things would be to, you know, strip the shirt, but there were a lot of kissing couples on that dance floor, and there are a limited amount of bedrooms and other odd places they can find to safely make out in, so he reckons that he maybe has ten minutes in here before he gets kicked out, and he does not want to be shirtless for that to happen.

However, it appears the universe quite agrees with him on that. Because just as he's dabbing at the stain on his shirt with a wad of toilet paper, he hears a voice in the doorway.

"Percy?"

He spins around like he's been electrocuted.

It's _Jason_. Percy isn't massively surprised – Jason is always a familiar face at parties like these. Not that Percy would really know, though, really, considering this whole 'party thing' is still rather new to him. However, it's still always so jarring to see him in situations like this. People like Annabeth and Allison wear their popularity on their sleeves. Jason has always struck Percy as just so ordinary that he always gets a jolt whenever he sees him in his natural setting.

"Oh!" he exclaims quickly. "Jason!"

"Hey." Jason sounds a little cautious. "What– what are you doing here?"

"Oh." Percy looks around so he doesn't have to look him the eye, and awkwardly pats the sink next to him. "Just– chilling."

"I meant at this party."

"Oh. Uh. Ali's– plus-one?"

"And why is Ali's plus-one camping out in the toilet?"

"Um." He looks down at his shirt. "Someone spilled beer on me."

"That doesn't smell like beer."

"It probably isn't. I don't know."

"Ah." Jason nods, a little uncertainly. "So. Parties, huh?"

Percy laughs uncomfortably. "Yeah. Who'd have thought?"

"Not me, that's for sure. I thought you didn't do parties."

"I mean. I don't, not really. These are more Ali's thing, you know."

Jason raises an eyebrow. "Then why are you here?"

"Plus-one. Like I said."

"And she's... where?"

"Probably with her friends." Percy shrugs with one shoulder. "I don't mind. It's kind of soothing."

Jason blinks disbelievingly. "Soothing."

"Yeah, sure. In a way, you know."

"A way."

"Yeah. Like. It's numbing, kind of. If you just embrace it all it's quite nice. You just feel your body kind of vibrate. S'nice."

Jason gives him one final stare. "You're weird."

"You've said."

There's a short, uncomfortable silence. Percy, suddenly feeling quite awkward, shoves his hands in his pockets and says, "Um, so, what brings you here?"

"Just some guys from the team," he says. "One of them – Brad – he found his soulmate. He's introducing us to him tonight, so I decided to tag along."

"How captainly."

"I'm happy for him. His soulmate sounds really good for him." And then he gives him this look, and suddenly Percy knows where this is going.

"Save it, Jase."

"I wasn't going to say anything."

"Yes, you were. Something about how Ali isn't good for me, or whatever. Trust me, I've heard enough of that from your sister, I don't need it from you, too."

"She's not wrong, per say," Jason says, but he has the decency to look a bit sheepish. "And this is kind of proof, you know."

"About what?"

"Well, you clearly don't want to be here."

Percy straightens, slightly offended. "You don't know that."

"Yes I do."

"Yes, you do," Percy admits, "but that doesn't mean Ali's a bad soulmate. We all have to make sacrifices for our soulmates. I mean, Piper's your soulmate, you should know."

"Yeah, but if Piper says no, I listen."

"It's just a party, Jase."

Jason folds his arms. Suddenly, Percy can see the football captain in him. "So, what sacrifices does Ali make for you, then?"

"I'll have you know, she makes _loads_ of sacrifices."

"Oh yeah?"

"Absolutely."

"Give me one example."

"Uh. Oh, well, this one time, I asked if we could get frozen yoghurt, and she said yes, even though she's lactose intolerant."

Jason stares at him. "Percy."

"I mean."

" _Dude_."

"There are– other examples?"

"Perce, this relationship is killing you. That was fricking _froyo_ , okay. This is about Ali putting you in a potentially hostile environment. I mean, come on, does she even know you have severe social anxiety?"

"I took my meds. Probably too much of them. I'll be okay."

"Yeah, but that's not good enough, Perce. You're driving yourself into the ground."

"You're telling me you've never not listened to Piper when she says no."

"Of _course_ I have. But that's over dumb stuff, like movies, and who's driving who to school, and– and _froyo_ , Percy, _fricking froyo_ , you're allowed to do that when it comes to froyo, for heaven's sake, but if she says no over a serious issue, like me putting her into a situation that could trigger something pretty crappy, then I listen, okay."

Percy swallows. Deep down, he knows Jason's right. He knows everyone's right. Piper, Thalia, Annabeth, _Annabeth_ , from all those months ago, she was right, but it's all come to too much now, and he can't stop. "Ali loves me. This is what makes her happy."

"Yeah, okay, she's happy, but what about _you_?"

"I'm happy."

The lie feels sour coming out from behind his teeth. Jason can tell.

"Come on, Percy."

"I'm serious."

"You're telling me right now, in this exact moment, you are the happiest you've ever been."

Percy stares at him helplessly. "Uh?"

"Percy."

Percy sighs and throws up his hands. "No, okay. Whatever. No, I'm not happy. I don't like any of this. I hate parties. I hate alcohol. I even hate this bathroom. What do you expect me to _say_? I can't admit it now. You of all people should know that. I ruined it with all of you. She's literally the only person I've got left."

"All you need to do is say sorry, Percy. You didn't kill someone."

"I may as well have. Did Thalia tell you I bumped into her the other day?"

Jason's eyes shift. "That– didn't come up."

"Right, well, big shock there. She couldn't even look at me in the eyes, Jason. I'm done. The only person who doesn't hate my guts is Ali, and even that's a stretch, because she's getting pretty flipping pissed at me because of how much I complain. I'm surprised you're even talking to me."

"You're my friend."

"Not anymore. That's all over, remember?"

Jason sighs. "You don't do yourself any favours, Percy. You did this to yourself."

"I'm aware of that, yes. That's kind of the worst part."

" _Leave_ her, Percy. She's not doing you any good. We can fix this, all of us. We all love you, even though right now some of us are pretty irritated with you right now. And that's fair."

Percy sighs. "They won't forgive me."

"You'd be surprised."

"Not Annabeth. I said some crap."

"Can't be any worse than what you said to me and Thalia."

"Marginally." He hesitates. "I called her a psychopath."

"Ah."

"Yeah. It was, uh. One of my less finer moments."

"Well. I'm going to have to agree with you on that one." Jason hesitates. "Listen. About– Annabeth..."

Percy sighs. "She's not my soulmate, okay?"

"I wasn't going to say that."

"Right, sure."

"She's miserable, Percy," Jason says softly. "She won't tell anyone but she's hurting. Why can't you just apologise?"

"She needs to apologise first."

"And that's why you're currently by yourself, mate," Jason says. "I don't know what's happened to you but you've kind of turned into a bit of a dick."

"Right, thanks."

"I'm not kidding. You can mope about how alone and terrible you feel but you're not doing anything for yourself if you keep acting like that. Literally, what happened to you? You used to apologise for, like. Breathing."

"Then I grew up."

"Into an arsehole, yeah. Look, I'm glad you've gathered some self-respect and whatever, good for you, love yourself, but there's a line between knowing your own worth and being arrogant, okay. And you've way overstepped it. Because if you keep acting like this then I'm not sure we'll really want you back."

Percy stiffens. "Maybe I don't want you guys either."

"Probably," Jason says. "But you need us a hell of a lot more than we need you, and you being a dick isn't doing yourself any favours. Just talk to her, okay. She's miserable, and so are you, because you're both blind as bats, and if you're going to be too stubborn to do anything then nothing will ever happen."

"What about Annabeth? Why can't she be the bigger person?"

"Because that's always you, Percy. You were the one who walked away from us. You can't expect to shoot her in the shoulder and then her to be groveling at your feet."

"Well, maybe I don't want to be the bigger person this time," Percy says. "Maybe I've grown up, and I'm sick of you all treating me like a doormat who'll immediately come running back. I've changed, okay, and for the better, and if you're going to call me growing a backbone and being able to say no to people a dick move then maybe I don't need you in my life anymore."

Jason flinches, like he's just been hit. Percy can't believe he just said that – but he doesn't take it back. He wants to, but he can't.

Finally, Jason squares his shoulders. "Fine," he says harshly. "Whatever. If that's how you really feel."

"It is."

Jason scowls at him. "Have fun with your new friends." He flings open the door, and then pauses. "Oh, and don't bother contacting us again. You made your decision. I don't want to see you ever again."

And then he's gone.

* * *

It comes to Annabeth in the middle of a study session.

"Oh my God," she says.

"What, you finally solved seven b?" Thalia mutters absently, scribbling something down. "Good on you, I feel so horrible for skipping it and not laboring over it like you did, aren't you a good person, can you tell me what ten c is?"

"I'm in love with Percy," she says.

"That doesn't sound like the answer to ten c, Chase."

Piper looks up. "I got sixty-three point zero two."

"Well, I got minus eight, so I clearly did something wrong."

Piper peers over her shoulder. "Oh, you muffin, you didn't factorise. You need to divide everything by one point five so you can put it back in the brackets."

Annabeth stares at them both, her heart thumping. "I'm in love with Percy."

"How the hell do you factorise?"

"Guys," Annabeth says. "I'm in love with Percy."

"We learnt it, like, four years ago, Thalia," Piper says. "Here, I'll show it to you."

"Guys."

Thalia looks up, annoyed. " _What_ , Annabeth?"

"I'm in love with Percy."

Piper shoots up like a firecracker. Thalia still looks unimpressed.

"Whoop-de-doo," she says. "I'm so happy for you. What's the answer to ten c?"

"You're in love with Percy?" Piper squeaks.

Finally. An appropriate reaction. Annabeth both deflates with relief and fills with anxiety. "I think so."

"Why are you so surprised?" Thalia asks.

"What do you mean?"

"You guys are literally soulmates. That's generally what soulmates do – fall in love with each other. I'd be more surprised if you didn't."

"He and _Allison_ are soulmates," Annabeth corrects, slightly petulantly.

"Don't kid yourself, Annabeth, she's as good for him as a knife to the heart."

"Did you just realise now?" Piper asks. Her Maths book has long since been abandoned and she shuffles around to where Annabeth is sitting, curls her hand around her ankle. "How long have you been thinking about this?"

"A while."

"God, Bethie, this must be killing you." Piper's eyes flash. "You should tell him."

Annabeth's jaw drops, and slowly she pulls away. "Are you _crazy_?"

"Allison is going to kill him, Annabeth. You told me yourself. You said he looked like a walking zombie. If anyone is going to persuade him out of that relationship it's going to be you."

"I am the last person who'll be able to do that," Annabeth says. "Guys, are you nuts? Do you remember how badly we ended things?"

"Considering we weren't there when it happened, not really," Thalia says. "Unless you're talking about what he said to me, in which case, yes, vividly."

"No." Annabeth sighs. "You know when I had to give in some reports to Mr Whitby? I bumped into Percy in the corridor. We, uh. Had a little tiff."

"A little?"

"A large tiff, okay. We argued. I told him some crap. He also told me some crap. Called me a psychopath."

"He's not wrong."

"Thalia!" Piper admonishes. "My God, do you have any tact?"

"Just saying."

"No, you're right," Annabeth says. "I am, a bit. It just hurt hearing him say it."

"Because you're in love with him, right."

"I wasn't then."

"You still loved him," Piper says. "Even if it wasn't romantically. You guys adored each other."

"And you clearly still do," Thalia says. "Because now you're in love with him."

"But there's the problem," Annabeth says. "He's in love with Allison."

Thalia straightens, almost like she's offended. "Don't be daft, Annabeth," she says. "Percy may be dumb, but he isn't stupid."

Piper frowns. "Uh–"

"He is simply not capable of loving a girl that shallow. He's been hanging around incredible intellects like ourselves for so many years now. Their conversations must be positively snooze-worthy to him, after all the time he's spent contemplating the depth and psychology we put into ours."

"Literally yesterday you and Nico almost beat each other up because he bet you that you couldn't cram fifty Skittles in your mouth at once," Piper says.

Thalia whirls on her. "Listen, you _rat_ –"

"But in all due respect," Piper hurries to say, "please continue."

Thalia glowers at her for a few more seconds, and then turns back to Annabeth with a _hmph_. "Anyway," she says. "Like I was saying. Percy can't love Allison. She's got nothing behind that pretty face."

Annabeth sighs. "See, you say that, but– Allison's smart, okay. Almost as smart as me. You think all those girls are thick as bricks, and, like, that's half true, but Ali is smart. She's gonna be able to keep up with Percy, and easily." She shrugs, a little hopelessly. This news doesn't upset her as much as it should. She's thought about it so much it's all kind of numbed her at this point. "Face it, guys. If Percy's happy, then there's nothing we can do."

"But he's not happy."

"We can't prove that."

"Sure we can." Piper folds her legs. "I actually have some news. Jason told me a while back, but I forgot. He saw Percy at a party."

Annabeth frowns. "A party?"

Thalia finishes her thought for her. "Why would Percy go to a party?" she asks. "That'd be like suicide."

"He and Jason talked in the bathroom," Piper says. Her face is troubled. "And I can say that Percy is not happy. Not as much as he convinces himself, anyway."

Annabeth sits up. "Why? What did Jason say?"

"Ali basically forced him to come. He told her didn't want to, but she spun all this crap about how she wanted to show him off and whatever, and he felt like he had to, or he'd let her down. He's literally doubled his medication so he can stand it all."

"My God," Annabeth says. "That's why he looked so bad."

"You think she does that a lot?" Thalia asks.

Annabeth laughs mirthlessly. "I didn't know she'd go that low, but now that I know she does, _absolutely_. Trust me. We're the best with manipulation. I just didn't know she'd stoop as low to use it on her soulmate."

" _Supposed_ soulmate," Piper interjects.

"That's not the point." Annabeth collapses back on the sofa and rubs her temples. "If Percy thinks _I'm_ the psychopath in this equation he's got his head on backwards."

"Precisely." Piper pokes her shoulder. "This is why you need to tell him you're his soulmate, so then he breaks it off with Allison before it gets any worse than it does. Honestly, Annabeth. We've really got nothing. He must know that Ali's crap and that's the worst part, because if he hasn't left now, then nothing will budge him. Nothing except you, though, obviously."

"I can't."

"See, you say that, but you can. Because you're a big girl and you recognize that our dearest friend is in a bit of a sticky situation that only you can remove him from."

Annabeth scowls at her half-heartedly. "Don't blackmail me."

"I'm not blackmailing you. I'm just– idealizing."

"Well, stop, it's annoying."

"Just do it, Chase." Thalia sits up and props her arm against the sofa. "What have you got to lose?"

"Everything!"

"You mean just your friendship with Percy. Which won't happen, even if it turns out he doesn't like you like that. You're both very sensible and grown-up and you'll deal with it like adults."

"Like you and Nico at lunch yesterday?" Piper asks innocently.

"I swear to God, McLean–"

"I'm sorry, you're super pretty, I love you."

Thalia seethes, but ignores her.

Annabeth shakes her head. "I won't."

"Why?"

"I can't lose this with Percy. You don't understand, Thalia. He was my first yellow Mark. He was literally my first friend! If I lose him then I've lost everything. That Mark is like, symbolic of the fact that I'm not that prickly and awful to have around that everyone I'll ever meet will hate me. If that Mark fades then that's it. Game over."

"Annabeth, your friendship is already over!" Thalia shouts, and Annabeth jerks like she's just been hit. "Can't you _see_ that? He already hates all of us. There is nothing you can do that will make it worse. That stupid Mark is what got us into this mess in the first place. But what you can do is try to make it better, and that's by pushing some sense into that kid. Don't try and save his feelings. I'm not sure what's happened to him – that's a lie, it's Ali – but he has turned into a grade-A arsehole who is literally on the brink of oblivion and if you want to get him anywhere close to back where he was a few months ago you can't be nice to him. There's no point. He thinks he's right. You need to prove him wrong."

Annabeth stares at her. The silence drags on.

Finally, she sighs. "Fine," she says. "Whatever. I'll talk to him."

Piper huffs out a sigh of relief. "Thank you."

"It won't work, though."

"That's not a very positive way of thinking about things," Thalia says. "And you're welcome in advance, by the way."

"For what?"

"Well, unlike you, I am actually quite optimistic in the success rate of this plan. So obviously when you confront him about how awful Ali is he'll be like, wow, of course, leave her, end up marrying you because also at some point he realises that he's deeply and tragically in love with you the same you are with him, and you'll have lots of babies together and live happily ever after. I personally reserve spot as maid of honour."

"I thought you hated me," Annabeth says.

"Oh, I do," Thalia says. "But unfortunately, many people share that particular sentiment about _me_ , which is honestly a shame because I feel like I have many favourable assets they're missing out on, so I have limited chances to being maid of honour. Besides, I tell you things like they are. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't do that?"

"A good one?"

"You can be the maid of honour at my wedding," Piper says. "I'll even let you wear sneakers."

"That's very nice of you, Piper, except you'll probably end up marrying Jason and he's my brother and our parents are skunkbags, one of whom, as Percy so delicately put it, is buried six feet under the ground, where I pray every day her soul rests in unease, so I'll be walking him down the aisle and I'll also probably be the best man, so I'll have to reject that. This is why I must be there for when Annabeth gets married."

"Me and Percy might not end up marrying each other, though," Annabeth says.

"Nonsense. You two are so drippy around each other I honestly feel bile rise up in my throat every time you so much as look at each other. If you don't get married I'll hate you even more then I do now."

"And you know where that starts," Piper says, with a big wink.

Annabeth sighs. "Talking to Percy."

"Atta girl," Thalia says, grinning. "You're catching on."

* * *

Percy doesn't feel good. At all.

All around him everyone is holding cups of alcohol and jumping around on the dance floor and the lights are dim and everything is purple and hazy and he kind of feels like he's going to throw up. He doesn't drink alcohol but somehow Ali coerced him into it and now he's holding a red plastic solo cup filled with something that really doesn't taste good. He had a few sips around Ali to keep her happy but as soon as she disappeared with her friends he swallowed it, felt how it burned going down his throat, and vowed to never do it again. That's where he draws the line.

He's not even sure why he's here, to be honest. Well. Ali, he supposes. That's why he's here. Because she's his soulmate, and he wants to keep her happy.

 _She's happy, Perce, but are you?_

Percy's grip tightens on his drink.

Someone jostles into him from the side and he stumbles forward a little. He doesn't feel good at here at all. He'd be literally anywhere else. Like a cliff edge. Or the mouth of a volcano. Just somewhere that's not here.

He regrets not taking up Grover's movie night offering. They probably would have just watched all the Indiana Jones movies in order, maybe gotten Chinese, too. That's Percy's ultimate comfort zone, just sitting curled up next to his best friend, eating his sweet and sour chicken, watching probably the stupidest most unrealistic _best_ movie series the planet has ever invented.

He'd rather be there. Not here. Here is full of half-sloshed teenagers pretending to be more drunk than they actually are jumping all over the place, spilling beer and yelling along incoherently to the loud thumpy EDM music on the overhead speakers. He closes his eyes as he feels someone else collide with his back. Grover probably would have invited Annabeth, too. Maybe Nico. They love the Indiana Jones movies. It would have been nice.

Nice. He wants nice. This isn't nice. This isn't nice at all.

In fact– oh God, _no_ , this isn't nice at all.

He can feel the onslaughts of a panic attack begin to grip his throat and he blindly fumbles for the way out. He needs to get out now now now, or he'll drown here, and no one will be able to see him because everyone has their eyes closed and the lights are too dark to see anyway. He claws forwards, bumping into people, too many people, and they bump right into him back, and he starts to whimper because no, this isn't nice at all, he doesn't feel good, he needs to tell Ali he's leaving, he just needs to get _out_ –

The music gets cranked up even further and the dance floor roars with approval. It's so loud that Percy can taste the noise on his tongue. It's sour and unpleasant and tastes a lot like blood and with every jolt of the ground beneath him he falls back further and further. The door is nowhere to be seen, it's just bodies everywhere, and he hates every moment of it and at this point he doesn't even care about Ali he just needs to get out because if he doesn't he's going to get into a panic attack so bad he might pass out. It's happened before, but that was at home when he had Sally to immediately whizz him to hospital, but _here_ , here, the air is pulsing and pushing and he knows that if he faints now he'll be trampled underfoot.

He needs to get out. He can't be here anymore or he might actually throw up.

Eventually, he finds the door. He gasps and pushes it open, stumbling outside. The cool air is heavenly on his face but it also does nothing to calm him down because somehow he can still feel the bodies on him, still taste the blood from the dance floor, and the muted house track from the house behind him is only making things worse. He clings onto the fence and closes his eyes shut, telling himself _calmdowncalmdowncalmdown_ _onetwothreefourfivesixseveneight this isn't working dammit dammit –_

His only last resort is Piper. Somehow, in his addled mind, he manages to pull his phone out his pocket, and he stabs Piper's contact and presses it to his ear. He's jittery and jumpy now, like he's just come down from a high, but he's still hyperventilating and he also thinks he might cry and either way he just feels crap and he needs to be back where he feels safe.

She picks up on the first ring. "Hey!"

Her voice is such a reassuring thing to hear in his haze that as soon as she's spoken Percy just bursts into tears.

"Piper," he gasps, "please, come get me."

* * *

"Can you believe the _nerve_ of some people?" Piper asks rhetorically as she dabs nail polish onto Annabeth's fingers. "Not that I never saw it coming, because Drew Tanaka is a sneaky little vixen who has probably had her way with the janitor at some point, but like– Mr _McCreedy_ , of all teachers?" Piper sighs a little, like the idea is just positively absurd, and because Annabeth is so out of league she just kind of stares at the purple glitter on her nails. "I mean. Mr McCreedy! He's not even fit! You wouldn't bang Mr McCreedy, would you?"

"I mean. I haven't ever really thought about it."

"That's because it's weird, isn't it? I mean. Here's the thing. I could totally understand going after someone like Mr Dawson, or Rian the Finance Manager. Because at least they're hot, you know? But, like. Mr McCreedy is forty. With a wife. And a pot belly. And Drew is like the queen of the school! I'm not even so shocked at the fact that it's, like, a student-teacher relationship more than it is the fact that it's Mr McCreedy. Do you think she's doing it for the grades?"

"Maybe."

"I'd think so. No offence to Mr McCreedy but a girl like Drew Tanaka does not go after a guy like him with intentions of just sleeping with him for the sake of it. She must have ulterior motives. I mean, the other day she rejected Luke – the quarterback, you know? – and Luke's _fit_. Mr McCreedy– I mean, he's a middle-aged Maths teacher. Really, what else is there to say?"

Luckily, Annabeth doesn't get to hear what else there is to say, because before Piper can answer her own question, her phone starts vibrating.

"Your phone's going off," Annabeth says.

"Yes, I noticed," Piper says. She picks it up off the floor, and then frowns. "Oh. It's Percy."

Annabeth's heart picks up. "Oh?"

"Yeah." Piper frowns a little. "I thought he was with Ali." She hesitates. "Should I answer?"

"He wouldn't have called you if it wasn't important."

"You're right," Piper says. "Oh well." She presses 'answer' and presses her phone to her ear. "Hey!"

Annabeth knows it's not good the second Piper's face crumples. "Hey, hey, hey," she says. "Hey, Perce, breathe, okay? What are you saying, I can't hear you?"

"What's wrong?" Annabeth asks.

Piper scrambles to her feet. "Shh, no, it's okay, Percy," she coos. "Breathe for me, okay, love? Breathe. Breathe." She looks at Annabeth. Her face is wild, panicked. Annabeth shoots up. "Put on your shoes, Chase, we need to go."

The girls race down the stairs. Annabeth is pretty sure she's wearing two wrong shoes and neither of them belongs to her and they're both still in their pajamas and toothpaste facemasks but they sprint for the car, leaping in like the police are on their tail. "He's at Sandy Barker's house," Piper pants, throwing Annabeth the keys. "Quick, we need to go."

Annabeth presses on the gas. The car zooms out of the driveway and down the road, and Annabeth is pretty sure she's breaking several driving laws by the way she's manically steering but she doesn't care because _Percy's in trouble_. They both don't have their seatbelts on and Piper is anxiously gripping the door handle like if Annabeth doesn't get them there pronto she's going to fling open the door and run. Annabeth glances at the speedometer, grits her teeth, and goes even faster.

She spots Percy at the front of the house. He's sitting on the kerb and from a normal perspective he would look relatively normal, but Annabeth recognises the after-effects of a panic attack. His face is ashen and pale and his cheeks are wet, and his leg is vibrating like it has a spring in it. Between his knees, he's clasping a red plastic cup so tightly his knuckles are white.

Piper explodes out the car the second Allison comes out the house.

They both cry, "Percy!" at the same time but Piper's the one who gets there first, getting right between his legs and cupping his face in her hands, pressing their foreheads together. Annabeth would normally think coming so close would be bad but Percy's body ripples with a shudder of relief and he collapses in her arms. Piper wraps herself around him tightly, resting her chin on his head.

Annabeth comes out the car. Allison looks mad.

"What's going on?" she demands.

Annabeth doesn't wait for anything. She yanks the keys out the ignition and storms straight out of the car, right up until she's right in Allison's face. Her years of solitude haven't taught her many useful life lessons but if there's one thing she knows how to do it's intimidation. Which she kind of needs right now, because she's in duck pajama pants and a singular Croc.

"Did you somehow _forget_ ," she snarls viciously, "that your boyfriend has chronic _social anxiety_?"

"What has that–?"

"Don't you _dare_ ask me what that has to do with anything, Cooper, because if you were half as good as a soulmate as Percy deserves you would know."

Allison glances over Annabeth's shoulder and catches sight of Percy. For the first time, her face crumples.

"Oh my God–"

"What on earth were you thinking? Taking him to a party and leaving him _alone_?"

"I didn't know!"

"That's a big fat lie and you _know_ it. Why would you do that to him?"

"Look, Annabeth, I'm sorry! I made a mistake!"

"That mistake almost cost you your soulmate."

Allison's face changes. "He wouldn't leave because of this."

"It's not just this, Cooper." Annabeth crosses her arms. "This whole relationship? This is unhealthy. For not just Percy. You're both _unhappy_ –"

"Don't you dare tell me that my relationship with my soulmate is unhealthy!"

"Look at him, Allison!" Annabeth shouts, and she points. Her whole arm is trembling. "Look at him! You did that to him! Does that seem like something a healthy relationship would do to a person?"

"Oh, that's rich!" Allison shouts back. "You wouldn't know a healthy relationship if it smacked you in the face! What do you know? You think you're so good and so clean because you're no longer big bad Annabeth and you dropped us as soon as you could, but you're no better than me! How dare you tell me that my relationship is unhealthy when you were the very definition of toxic!"

"That's the difference, Allison, I've changed! Face it, you didn't give two hoots when I left you. You were just happy because you could take the throne."

"That's what your think it's about? _Popularity_? How sick _are_ you?"

"What else _is_ there?" Annabeth cries desperately. "I may have been just like you, Cooper, but you were just like me, and I ruled you for _years_. I know you. You may love Percy now, but you won't in ten years, because in ten years you'll have been together long enough to know everything about each other and while you may think you do you don't care about him, not really. In ten years people will stop seeing you as the cutest couple of the school or the perfect love story where the beautiful charitable girl falls for the shy underdog and they'll start seeing you as soulmates and that _terrifies_ you."

As she speaks, she knows she's not just talking to Allison. A few metres behind, Piper's eyes glow luminous at her. She knows those words are just as much as for her as they are Ali.

Allison seethes with rage, but it doesn't faze Annabeth. That's the thing about once being at the top. All the girls who were once below her are like clockwork, tick-tick-ticking in circles, playing their parts, painting their nails. She may have never spoken to them but she knows each and every one of them from the inside out, because they're all the same. Allison is beautiful, sure, and she was always going to be first in line when Annabeth dropped, but she's no different to the girls who grovel at their feet.

Annabeth clawed her way to the top and glossed over her bloody nails until she was fit for a queen. She was once Allison. She maybe still is. But she no longer feels afraid that her reign is being sabotaged. Allison took what was left of the throne after Annabeth imploded, tried to piece it back together, sloppily. She can have the crown for all Annabeth cares.

But she can't have Percy. Percy is far, far, _far_ more important than a superficial hierarchy of good eyebrows ever was.

But unfortunately, the difference between Allison and the other girls is that her brain works just that step ahead of theirs. Her mouth forms an 'o'. "Oh my God. You think you're Percy's soulmate, don't you?"

Annabeth's world falls sideways. She almost gasps, like she has just been punched in the throat. "Allison, no–"

"You do," Allison says, her face twisting with realization. Annabeth's heart pounds because dammit _she's not wrong_. "You _do_. That's why you've been trying to get me away, isn't it? Because you think _you'll_ be a better soulmate?"

"Ali–"

Allison takes a step backwards, like Annabeth repulses her, like she's contagious. "You don't care about Percy's health. You just want to be right so you can take him from me. You're such a _hypocrite_ , Chase. Giving me all that bull about how I won't love him in ten years when you're exactly the same?"

Annabeth quivers. "At least I _know_ it. At least I'm not so much a coward that I can own _up_ to it."

Allison laughs mirthlessly, like Annabeth hasn't even spoken. "You don't deserve Percy."

"I'm not the one who's meant to be his girlfriend and literally put him in one of the worst situations I could have."

"I'm not his babysitter, how was I meant to know?"

"Because you're his _soulmate_!" Annabeth shouts, and she sees Piper look up sharply. "You're his soulmate, Ali, you're meant to know things like not putting him in situations that trigger him into panic attacks!"

"I didn't know he was so fragile! I thought he could handle it!"

"Handle a _party_? Allison, he can barely look people in the _eyes_ , why the hell would you think he could do a whole party _by himself_?"

"He should have told me _no_!"

"But he _can't_!" Annabeth shouts, and that's when Allison takes a step backwards. "Are you _blind_ , Cooper? He _can't_! Do you think he's wanted to do half the stuff you've forced him into? No, of _course_ he doesn't, he only does it because you want to, and he'd rather drug himself into _borderline oblivion_ than upset you, and you don't even _notice_."

Allison doesn't respond.

"I know I don't deserve Percy," Annabeth tells her, softer, and she's finally making her retreat now. "I doubt anyone will, really. But you need to realise that you don't either."

Piper stands up. She's holding Percy's hand. The red plastic cup is lying in the gutter. Annabeth chucks her the keys and gives Percy a little smile. He returns it, shyly, a bit wistfully, and then Piper is climbing into the car and Percy is, too, but in the backseat. After a moment's hesitation, Annabeth gets in the backseat with him. She doesn't turn around to look at Allison.

It wouldn't have mattered if she had. Allison goes back to the party. Annabeth no longer cares.

* * *

The drive back is tense.

Piper is driving. Annabeth and Percy are in the backseat. Annabeth isn't sure what she should do, because she's never been around Percy in the aftermath of a panic attack, but Percy is shaking and he can't look anyone in the eye so she moves closer and puts an arm around him. He tenses up at first and Annabeth almost retreats but then he lets out a shuddering sigh and pushes closer to her, resting his head on her shoulder. Tears begin to drip soundlessly from his eyes.

He doesn't seem panicked anymore, just exhausted. It's like his flame has completely gone out.

Annabeth closes her eyes and prays to anyone who will listen for forgiveness on all the times she's caused something like this, because she knows she has. If she had known it was this bad, she would have stayed far away.

If she had known Percy, she would have steered clear to keep him safe.

Piper is the first to speak.

"Are you okay, Percy?" she asks softly.

Percy nods a little against Annabeth's shoulder. He's shivering, but it's not cold. Annabeth rests her head on top of his and she feels his whole body heave with a sigh. "I think so," he says quietly.

"Good." Piper pointedly doesn't look at him in the rearview mirror. She couldn't, anyway, because Percy isn't looking either. "Now, can I ask what the hell just happened?"

Annabeth feels Percy stiffen. "Piper, come on," she says in a low voice.

"No, it's okay." Percy shuffles around uncomfortably. "Um. I just. Got overwhelmed."

"Why were you even there? You hate parties."

Percy doesn't respond. They all know the answer, anyway.

Piper sighs. The car pulls to a red light, so she turns around in her seat. "Why do you do it, Perce?" she asks softly. "Why do you keep putting yourself through this?"

"She's my soulmate," Percy tells her. There's no heart in it. Annabeth wonders if nowadays that's all that's holding Percy to Allison. It's not two lovers holding hands anymore. It's two wrong jigsaw pieces forced into each other, two different souls handcuffed.

She doesn't look at the PJ on her wrist because she thinks if she does she might cry.

"She's a crap soulmate," Piper says. "Did you tell her no?"

Percy doesn't answer.

"Percy."

"I don't know _how_ ," he whispers. "I don't want to lose her."

"She's not good for you."

Normally Percy would fight, but he's lost all his fight tonight. "The light's green."

Piper sighs, but turns around and starts driving again.

The rest of the drive is silent. Piper stops them at McDonalds to get Percy an ice cream. She offers to buy Annabeth something but all Annabeth can think about is Allison's face, twisted in fury, and Percy's red plastic cup lying on the street, and she feels so sick she's not sure she can stomach anything at the moment so she shakes her head. Piper buys herself a box of chicken nuggets but it's clear no one feels like eating.

The box gets chucked in the bin, untouched.

Aphrodite is fast asleep by the time they arrive home. All the lights are shut off, the only one still on being Piper's bedroom from earlier, when they forgot to turn it off. They all clamber out of the car, and Piper unlocks the door quickly. Now that she's standing still and not overwhelmed by pure fury, Annabeth realises just quite how cold it is. Percy stands a little further off, not completely away, but she would only be able to touch him if she stretched her arm out. She doesn't, though. She understands he needs space.

They get inside, and Piper flicks on the light. The hallway floods with light and they all blink, a little disoriented. For the first time Percy seems to register they're wearing pajamas.

"You have ducks on your shorts," he says quietly.

"Oh." Annabeth looks down. "Yeah. I guess."

Piper rolls her eyes fondly. "Do any of you want anything?"

Annabeth shakes her head. Percy hesitates for a moment, and then shakes his head too.

Piper nods, appeased. She steps closer to both of them. She squeezes Annabeth's hand and then kisses Percy's forehead, hard, and then bids them both quietly goodnight and pads upstairs. Annabeth and Percy are left alone in the hallway.

Annabeth looks at him. "I'm making tea, do you want any?"

Percy nods, almost unnoticeably. Normally he's always one for a right natter, loves having long mindless talks, but he's withdrawn tonight, shaken and tired and also a bit tipsy, Annabeth thinks, so she leaves him be and takes it as a well enough answer. She kicks off her trainers (they are, as it turns out, mismatching, and also not hers) and heads quietly into the kitchen. After a few moments, Percy follows.

Annabeth switches on the kettle. Percy lifts himself onto one of the tall spinny chairs, hooks one of his feet around the back of it. Childish, Annabeth thinks. She doesn't point it out.

"What kind do you want?" she asks in a quiet voice. Irrationally, she feels like if she speaks in a voice louder than that Percy might just break.

"Chamomile."

She busies herself with the teabags. The kettle pops, and she pours hot water into two mugs, and then milk. She knows Percy likes four spoons of sugar, so she puts them all in, and leaves hers as it is, because she likes her tea bitter. She picks them both up and asks, "Living room?"

It's very late Thursday night and they have school tomorrow but Percy follows her in anyway.

They both collapse on the sofa. Annabeth tucks her feet underneath her and so does Percy, and she hands him his tea. She balances hers on her knee and lets it cool down, but Percy starts sipping straight away. She knows his lips are very sensitive to extreme temperatures because he can barely talk after eating a curry and he has to wait donkey's years to start on a hot chocolate but she almost understands tonight.

Sometimes it's not enough to leave. Sometimes you have to burn it off.

They sit in silence. Annabeth doesn't move to break it.

After a few moments, Percy says, in a soft voice, "Thanks."

"For what?"

He shrugs. "All of this. You didn't have to."

"Uh, I kind of did. You had a panic attack."

Percy smiles, a bit wryly. "Yeah."

They sip in quiet. It's nice. The moon shines cold and pale on the floor but it doesn't reach the sofa and Annabeth is almost glad. Wives' tales says moonlight can make you crazy. She doesn't believe it, but she's had enough craziness to last her a while. She watches it flicker on the floorboards.

She glances over at Percy. Distantly, he's gazing at a spot on the wall.

"Percy," she says softly.

"Hm?"

"Why were you at the party? Really."

Percy's eyes clear, but he doesn't look away from the wall. "I don't know."

"Yes, you do."

His whole body sags with a sigh. "Yeah."

She waits.

"Ali always wants me there," he says, his voice almost a whisper. "She always wants me to– to go meet this person, and be introduced to that kid from her middle school. She gets upset when I don't go. I want to make her happy."

"A relationship is about how both people feel, you know."

"I know." Percy sighs again. "I just– I don't know what to do."

Annabeth cracks a wry smile. "You already know what I'm going to say."

"That I should leave her."

"Yeah."

"I can't, Annabeth." His voice cracks, and Annabeth's heart does with it. "She's all I have left."

"You have us."

"No I don't. You all hate me. Sometimes I feel like she's only the one who cares anymore. And she just bears me. And I don't blame you. Any of you. I've kind of been a dick. I just–" He swallows and tilts his head against the wall, staring up at the ceiling. He blinks slowly. Blinking back tears, Annabeth realises. "I don't know what else to do."

"You don't have to kill yourself attending parties. That's not going to do anything but make your relationship worse."

"If I _don't_ go it'll make it worse."

In a moment of bravery, Annabeth reaches forward and takes his hand. He looks up at her. "Then _leave_ her," she says earnestly. Percy swallows. His eyes are glowing in the darkness. "Percy, you can't stay with someone like that just to prove a point. That's not how the world works. You're only going to damage yourself further. I mean, you saw what tonight did to you."

"If I leave her I won't have anyone left."

"You'll have us," she promises. "Come sit with us tomorrow. We'll make everything better, okay? If you apologise and if you mean it, they'll take you back. You can't live like this anymore."

Percy stares at her for a long, long time. Outside, the night yawns on, and somewhere twenty minutes away his soulmate is drinking alcohol and dancing with her friends, and here he is, shaken, terrified and alone. Annabeth silently seethes with rage and hatred for Allison. She's overzealous and explosive, and left in the debris is the shell of her supposed soulmate. He sits there, quietly, with an over-sugared tea and a girl who used to be his best friend on the sofa next to him, and there's madness spilt all over the floor in shiny silvery wisps. Annabeth waits with baited breath.

Finally, he nods. "Okay," he says quietly.

Annabeth's chest floods with relief. "Thank God," she says. "I'm so glad, Percy."

He smiles in a way that doesn't reach his eyes. "Yeah, me too."

Annabeth should think something about it, but she doesn't.

* * *

It's a mistake. Because the next day, when Annabeth is waiting at the lunch table, her eyes ready and alert, Percy walks through the doors, and she's just about to wave him over until she notices who's attached to his arm.

His hair is ruffled and two buttons on his shirt are undone. His mouth is the exact same shade as Allison's.

Annabeth almost breaks her fork in half.

* * *

After the twentieth party you begin to almost see the beauty in them.

Percy stands at the side, with his red plastic cup, as always, watching as Allison jumps around with her friends on the dance floor. It's the same old routine, honestly. Percy can't really the remember the last time he didn't spend a Friday night in a stranger's house where the music is so loud he can't hear himself think with some sort of alcoholic beverage in his hand.

In a warped, weird way, he almost kind of likes it. There's just so much thumpy pop songs they can play before they all kind of just meld into one big track with too much bass and synthesized vocals like harmonized sirens. He's learnt to drown it all out and just live in his own head for a while, just him and the stupid red plastic cup, maybe Grover sometimes, maybe Piper, most probably Annabeth.

He's learnt quite a few things at these parties. One: don't drink any alcohol. It makes him all fuzzy and uncomfortable, and it's one thing to already feel fuzzy and uncomfortable on a day-to-day basis, and scenes like this tend to make him even fuzzier and more uncomfortable, so alcohol only raises the chances of throwing up on someone.

Two: find a bathroom or empty area to just loiter in. Percy isn't a people person on the best of occasions, so if he can avoid people it just seems like the safest bet to, like, not dying. It works, most of the time, and the times it doesn't are only the times where he can't find a bathroom or closet of sorts because they're already occupied with horny teenagers doing regrettable things. So. Again, foolproof.

And then number three, probably the most important: if you feel a panic attack, leave.

Unfortunately, he knows this from experience. Lots and lots of experience. And last time was just embarrassing. He was so, so, so grateful for Piper and Annabeth, but if he wants to try do anything with his life and move on, and not just spend all his time moaning and lamenting about how much he misses his old friends he's just going to have to suck it up and avoid any situations they could possibly be roped into again.

And, because his luck is just so grand, he can feel one right now.

He almost rolls his eyes, because, like. Come on. Now?

Nonetheless, he has to follow protocol, before it really ends up bad. He puts his cup on the counter and pushes off it, starting to make his way to the door. He's levelling his breathing, four seven eight, four seven eight, like the lady at the hospital said, and he's looking forward and only forward, because if he looks anywhere else he'll get overwhelmed and start crying right where he stands, which would be embarrassing and also highly impractical. He needs to wait until he's outside for any blubbering to happen.

And then. He steps outside. And it's raining.

Wow, universe. Thanks.

The rain almost helps, in a way. It's calming and the feel of his skin and hair and clothes all getting wet gives him something that isn't the boom-boom-boom of the music from the house behind him to focus on. He takes one deep breath, two, three, four, and blinks, feels the raindrops drip off his eyelashes, and suddenly he feels grounded.

The sky is black and swallowing, and the rain is falling like metal bullets. It's cold and he's not wearing anything except a thin T-shirt but it's the most alive he's felt in a long time. He feels– floaty, almost. Ethereal.

He starts to make his way home. He doesn't bother texting Allison. She'll know. Or she just won't care.

The rain is grounding. Everything around him is black, and dark, and the only light is coming from the party behind him. He can see the reflections of the strobe lights through the windows in the puddles, but he kind of likes the darkness. It feels safer, almost. In the party the light was exposing, blinding, but the darkness is comforting. If he were any drunker he would think of it as a good metaphor for his relationship with Allison and how the brightness was actually kind of sickening after a while and how he preferred to be invisible with his old friends, but he's stone cold sober and he's not very poetic sober so the thought never crosses his mind.

He feels peaceful. He doesn't really think anything could disturb his mood.

Well. Until:

" _Percy_?"

Of course. Of course.

Reluctantly, he turns around. "Hey, Annabeth."

Annabeth stands in the middle of the pavement, in a yellow raincoat and a pair of cheap canvas shoes that look completely soaked through. Percy remembers that coat, and those shoes. He'd always make fun of her because it didn't have a hood, because _what's the point of a raincoat with no hood_ , and then she'd push him into a wall and say something like _what's the point of you,_ and then he'd probably throw something at her and they'd run off chasing each other like kids. It's just as useless now as it was back then – her blonde hair is splayed, matted, against her neck, and she's got rain running down her nose and off her eyelashes. It's dark but she stands out like a light because of her coat.

She looks warm, though. He can see the neck of her fuzzy hoodie poking out from underneath. He shivers, involuntarily.

"What are you doing here?" Annabeth asks. "It's raining."

"I can see that."

"Then why are you standing in the middle of it like an idiot?"

Percy straightens. "Maybe I like the rain."

"You could catch a cold."

"So could you. That coat isn't doing much for you."

Annabeth's lips twitch upwards in what could be a hint of a smile. "It's keeping me dry."

"Right, of course. Duh. I mean. Look at how dry your hair is."

"I will throw something at you."

"I dare you."

Normally she would, something small like a paper cup or pen, but there's nothing around so she doesn't. Instead, she just shoves her hands in the front pocket of her raincoat and rocks back and forth. Her feet are so wet in her shoes Percy can hear them squeak.

"So," she says. "You gonna tell me the real reason why you're just standing there like a moron?"

"I'm just chilling."

"In the rain."

"It's quite relaxing."

"Your fingers are going blue."

"Everything goes numb after a while. I couldn't tell."

Annabeth raises an eyebrow at him. She looks like she's about to say something when suddenly the door from a few houses down flings itself open and a girl in red high heels stumbles out, and throws up on the lawn outside. Music blares all the way down the street.

Percy knows he's screwed as soon as the girl passes out. Annabeth turns to him.

"Percy," she says.

"Allison wanted me to come."

"Another party?"

"They're– not so bad."

"You need to stop doing this, Percy."

"You don't know Ali like I do. I can't say no."

"You forget that I _do_ know Ali. We were friends before."

"Before."

"There's a reason I left her behind."

"She's changed, Annabeth. And so have you. You can't seriously expect her to still be the same person she was when you two were friends."

"I kind of can." Annabeth's face takes on a wistful look. "Percy, I– I changed because I was surrounded by the right people. She's still in there, in the snake pit. If anything, she'd have got worse."

"Whatever." Percy wraps his arms around himself. He's completely soaked through. He can feel his ribs press through his thin shirt like a wire fence. "It doesn't matter."

"Of course it matters!"

"Why? You're not my friend anymore!"

"You're slowly killing yourself. You really think I'm just going to stand here and watch you do that to yourself?"

"Why wouldn't you?"

Annabeth lets out a frustrated noise and throws her hands up in the air. She looks like she wants to say eight things at once and also like she wants to punch him in the face, so she lets out an intelligible noise instead and waves her hands. "You– you _dumbass_ , because I care about you, that's why! Because you're stuck with a girl like Allison who will do nothing but ruin you and you're running yourself into the ground and you keep denying it because you're just so wrapped up in this bubble where everything is perfect and all the pieces are falling into place and you're so deep in denial that you think she's the right one for you, when it's all wrong, and she's not, and it's ended up with you freezing your butt off in the middle of the night in the rain outside a party you clearly don't want to be at and just– when are you going to _realise_ that you're in danger of _killing_ yourself?"

She's out of breath. Percy thinks she may be crying.

He can't say anything. He just stands there, the rain dripping into his collar and down his spine, his mouth open, unable to speak. He just kind of gawks at her.

"I'm sorry," Annabeth mutters, furiously scrubbing at her eye with the heel of her palm. "I– didn't mean to yell."

"You're crying," Percy says.

"No, I'm not."

"Yes you are."

She sniffs sharply. "Just a bit."

Percy doesn't know what to say. He just stands there. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?"

"I don't know. Because you're crying."

"I'm not crying." She furiously wipes her cheeks. "Just. Rain, you know."

"Are you crying over me?"

Annabeth sighs. "Yes. No. I don't know. Yes. Because you're dumb. I mean– sorry. I'm just tired."

"You don't have to cry over me," Percy says. "I'm okay."

"Not enough, though."

"I'm managing."

Annabeth manages a watery laugh. "Oh, _Percy_ –"

"Honestly, I'm okay. Look, I was even going home. That's responsible, isn't it?"

"You have to probably be the biggest idiot I've ever met," Annabeth says softly.

"What does that mean?"

And then she's kissing him.

Percy can't breathe. He feels like he's simultaneously been hit by a car and discovered the biggest mountain of treasure he's ever seen, and he's not sure how to quite explain it but he feels _euphoric_. Annabeth tastes of rain and she smells of plastic from her coat and clean clothes from her sweater and it's a bit wet because they're both absolutely drenched, and her hands just stay on his shoulders and his stay rigid by his side because _holy crap this is happening_ , but he feels like he's ascending to heaven and he's not sure quite how to deal with it.

And then suddenly, with a broken sob, Annabeth wrenches herself from his mouth. She's properly crying now. Percy can only stare at her.

"I'm sorry," she says. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that."

Percy opens his mouth, to reassure her that it's okay, but he can't, and suddenly he's not quite sure it is anymore.

"I'm sorry," she says, moving backwards. "I'm so sorry."

And then she's gone. She takes off running. Her sneakers make wet sounds as they land against the pavement and Percy watches her as long as he can before the darkness swallows her up, even her fluorescent coat.

Suddenly, he's not sure he likes the darkness so much anymore. But it _has_ made up his mind about something.

* * *

Percy texts Allison at lunch time.

 **Percy** : hey can u meet me in mr murphy's room it's important

He knows it'll mean nothing to her. She'll show up, sure, but she'll be ten minutes late, with a smile and a flick of her bobby ponytail, because oh sorry, Percy, I just got caught up chatting to the girls. She wants him to know that he'll always come second, and he'll have to be okay with that.

But he's not. Not anymore.

Like clockwork, she waltzes in, her green dress swirling around her. Late. She blinks up at him prettily, giving him a sultry smile. Percy can only manage something half-hearted back, that probably looks a little like a grimace.

She doesn't seem to notice. "Hey," she chirps easily. "What's up?"

It's funny, how she can act so nonchalant, when Percy feels like his entire world is crumbling before his eyes. But maybe that's a good thing. She always gets catty when upset, and if his world crumbles it'll leave space for him to build a new one. Without her.

Still, his throat feels tight. "I needed to talk to you."

"Sure," she says. "Talk."

"You need to promise me you won't be angry."

She laughs. "Why would I be angry?"

"Just– promise me."

"Percy, you're scaring me."

It all comes out in a rush. "You're not my soulmate."

She cocks her eyebrow. "I'm sorry?"

"You're not my soulmate."

"Yeah, all right, I heard that bit," she says, and her voice sounds nasty. "I just didn't think you were _serious_."

She's speaking in that way that would normally make him cower and agree. But not this time. "I'm serious."

"Come on, Percy."

"You're not my soulmate, Ali. Don't pretend like you are."

"But–" She hesitates, only for a second, before she's back to normal. But Percy notices. He's got her. She's unsettled. "Percy, don't be stupid, it literally says it on your _arm_ –"

"I'm not saying the Mark is wrong," Percy says. "The Mark is right. Just– you're not."

Everything is silent. Percy can hear his heartbeat in his ears. This is so out of his comfort zone he feels like he'd be more at home in front of a hungry tiger but his mom said something about if you can't take the heat you've got to get out of the kitchen and he can't do a relationship like this, not anymore. Ali looks like a fish out of water, her mouth opening and closing, but nothing coming out.

For a second, she actually looks panicked.

But it's only brief, because the second Percy sees it flash across her eyes her forehead creases and then she's letting out a mirthless laugh.

"No way," she says. "No _way_."

"No way what?"

"You think it's Annabeth, don't you?"

Everything stops. Percy feels like he can't breathe, but he doesn't respond, because something mean inside him wants to prove Ali wrong in every way he can.

"No way," she says again. "No way."

"She's better than you'll ever be."

"You're deluded," she says. "You're absolutely deluded. Annabeth is _toxic_. She'll tear you apart."

Annabeth said the same thing about her. But Annabeth brought him home in the rain when she owed him nothing and Allison just puts him in shark-infested waters.

"We both know it," Percy says. "You're not my soulmate, and you never were. You didn't love me."

"I loved you more than she did," Allison says fiercely. "Annabeth is nothing compared to me."

"Yeah, but you took me to parties," Percy says, "and Annabeth took me home. I said no so many times, Ali, you never listened once. Not once."

"I was trying to help you!"

"Helping me is gradually breaking me in. You don't stab someone through the gut and tell them you're building up their pain tolerance. You never cared about me. You just wanted someone to parade around so you could say you had a soulmate."

"You don't know it's Annabeth. It could be anyone."

"But it's not," Percy says. "Did you know after we started dating my prescription doubled? I had to start taking more pills. Almost every day. I took an almost lethal amount, just so I could survive. Soulmates don't do that to each other, Ali. You can't put me in situations like that after I've said no and then tell me you love me. You especially don't put me in situations like that and leave me alone."

Ali doesn't speak.

"You had to have known," Percy says. "You must have known this wouldn't have worked out."

"You're my soulmate," she argues. It's weak. She must know that Percy has already given up. "You're _crazy_ , _I'm_ your soulmate, not her. What has she given you that I haven't? What does she have that I don't? She's a _psycho_ , Percy."

"Tell me honestly," he says. "Why did you agree to date me?"

"Because you're my soulmate," she says.

"I was the most unpopular kid in the whole school," he says.

"I don't care about that, Percy. You're still my soulmate."

"No I'm not, and you know it. You just liked the idea of having a soulmate – or rather, having a broken soulmate, that you could fix."

She looks aghast at this accusation, but guilty, too. Percy's hit the nail on the head.

"I didn't get with you so I could _fix_ you!"

"Then why did you keep bringing me to those bloody parties?" he says. "Then why did you keep ignoring me? I told you, I'm socially inept, I can't do parties, I can't do people, I couldn't do _you_ on the best of occasions, for heaven's sake, and yet you still kept bringing me!"

"I wanted to show you off!"

He laughs mirthlessly. "Don't give me that crap, Ali, you left me alone as soon as you could."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realise I was your _babysitter_."

"You didn't have to be! You could have just left me at home and had the time of your life by yourself at those parties, but you kept bringing me along! And you want to know why?"

"No!" Ali says, but Percy says it anyway.

"Because you're a big fat coward, Ali, and you just wanted to fix me, because you knew that if you did that would make you the best person at school. If you didn't want to fix me, if you really loved me, you would have listened to me and left me at home, but you brought me along every time and introduced me to people, in the hopes that I would actually make friends, when you knew I couldn't. Face it, Ali, you're just as fake as the rest of them."

Ali glares at him. "You looked at me in the eyes the first time we met. What about that, huh?"

"That was an accident."

"Could do you some good for you to have more of those then."

"It's an accident for a reason," Percy says harshly. "And maybe that time was an accident that shouldn't have happened."

That was under the belt, and Percy knows it. The sick part of him thinks it's almost worth it, the way Ali doubles over, like she's just been hit.

"You don't mean that," she says.

"Yes I do," Percy says, and he really does.

There's nothing left for him here. He shoulders his bag and starts towards the door, without even looking back at her.

Then:

"Me and Annabeth are the same, you know," she says nastily, and Percy turns around. Once upon a time she used to look so terrifying. Now she just looks washed out and old. "You think I'm so evil? Annabeth was just as bad as the rest of us. Worse. I'm a saint compared to her. She won't be any better than me."

"Probably," Percy says. "But at least she has the balls to admit it."

Allison can't respond to that, so she doesn't. Percy turns around again, this time for good, and leaves.

* * *

"Did you hear?" Grover asks one day.

"No," Thalia says. "And I don't particularly care, either."

"You will about this," Grover says. He sits down, his crutches awkwardly bracing against each other. "Apparently, Percy and Allison broke up."

Annabeth sits up. She feels like she's just been plugged into a power socket. "What?"

"Explain," Piper demands.

"Don't shoot the messenger," Grover says. "It's just a rumour."

"Do you believe it?" Piper asks.

"I think so. I mean, have you seen how the dynamic's changed? Allison used to be suckered to Percy, at like. All times. Now she isn't even looking at him. None of them are. It's like he's just disappeared."

"Wow," Thalia says without conviction. "Poor Percy."

"Not really," Grover says. "He looks pretty damn pleased with himself. I mean, I don't think anyone's given him a second look today, but he looks overjoyed."

"You think they really broke up?" Annabeth asks.

"That's just the rumour," Grover says, picking up his sandwich. "But I believe it."

Piper pats Annabeth's thigh reassuringly, like she has everything under control. Before Annabeth can ask what, she cranes her neck, and then grabs a random boy by the back of his shirt.

"Hey!" he yelps.

"What do you know about Percy and Allison?" Piper demands.

The boy looks terrified. "Nothing!"

"Lies and slander," Thalia says monotonously.

Piper arches an eyebrow.

"I've been sworn to secrecy," the boy squeaks.

"I knew it," Piper says. "Tell us everything."

"I can't, I've been sworn to secrecy!"

"Who told you?"

"Drew."

"Of course," Piper says. "What did I expect. She has blackmail, doesn't she?"

The boy looks momentarily puzzled. "No?"

"Well," Thalia says. "Plot twist."

Piper pats his chest, looking almost quite proud. "Good boy. Don't send her anything incriminating, she'll use it against you. Now, since you have no nudes being threatened to be released, tell us everything."

The boy swallows. His eyes dart behind Piper, looking at everyone on the table. Nico offers a big smile, showing teeth covered in ketchup.

"I used to be Drew's best friend," Annabeth says. "You can trust us."

"No you can't," Thalia says, and Annabeth elbows her sharply.

The boy sighs. "Fine. Percy and Allison broke up. Allison's proper pissed about it, too. It's why she doesn't want anyone knowing, because Percy broke up with her."

Grover's eyebrows furrow. "Wait, seriously?"

The boy nods. "It didn't go down very well. Allison's pride's been hurt too much. She's waiting it out until she can come up with a believable story that doesn't involve Percy breaking up with her."

Annabeth's mind starts whirring.

Percy broke up with Allison.

 _Percy_ broke up with _Allison_.

"You won't tell anyone, will you?" the boy says anxiously, taking their silence the wrong way. "Drew will cut me if she found out I told anyone."

"We won't," Piper promises. She releases his shirt and pats his shoulder. "Stay responsible."

The boy scrams.

Piper sits back down. "Well, that was a ride. Percy broke up with Allison?"

"Wow," Thalia says, for the first time genuinely impressed. "Maybe he's grown a shred of sense back."

"I can't believe this," Annabeth mutters.

"Oh, I can," Piper says. "I mean, I'm surprised, sure, but I'm so relieved. I knew he had it in him. I'm so glad he's found sense. That girl was as good as an acid bath."

"Good for him, honestly," Nico says.

"Why now, though?" Thalia asks. "Why now? He's been with her so long. Why has he only seen sense now? I mean, the only people he's really talked to since they got together were her and her bone-headed friends, and as if any of them would advise him against getting with her. They're probably equally up her arse."

"Maybe he just saw some sense," Piper says. "It can happen."

 _Or maybe I kissed him and threw a wrench in the works_ , Annabeth thinks. At first, she feels a clench of guilt, for knowing that she willingly destroyed a relationship, before she remembers that it was Percy and Allison's relationship, and it only takes one second of picturing Allison's hand on his arm on her mouth on his for Annabeth to feel completely better.

"Yeah," she says. "Totally random."

Piper gives her a knowing look. "Totally."

Everyone else is oblivious. "Well," Grover says. "At least this means that he's one step closer back to us. After all, we only started fighting because of Allison. Now that he's realised how awful she is and dumped her maybe we can all be friends again."

"Maybe," Thalia says. "If he apologises first."

"He will," Grover assures him. "He's back to the old Percy. The old Percy wouldn't let anyone treat him like Allison did. Now that old Percy's back he'll be back any minute, just you wait."

"Sounds thrilling," Piper says. "Annabeth, can I talk to you quick in the bathroom?"

Annabeth knows where this is going. "Sure."

They both stand up and start pushing through the throng of people towards the loos. Piper bodily wrestles her way through them, pulling Annabeth along behind her, and then practically throws her into the stall. There's a junior doing her makeup in the mirror, but as soon as she sees them she bolts.

Piper ignores her. She stands and puts her hands on her hips. "Explain," she says.

Annabeth plays dumb. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"What did you do?"

Annabeth sighs. "It's not that big of a deal."

"I quite disagree, I think this is a very big deal indeed. Two nights ago you said you were going to go out to buy us pancake mix and you come home crying – don't look at me like that, as if you thought the rain excuse was going to explain your red eyes – without the pancake mix, may I add, and now suddenly Percy's broken up with his psycho girlfriend. Coincidence?"

"Some would think so."

"Funnily enough, I'm not one of them. What happened?"

Annabeth sighs. "I bumped into him on the way to the shops, okay?"

Piper waits.

"We talked. I yelled." She pauses. "I may have kissed him."

Piper practically dies right there on the spot. "You _WHAT_?"

Annabeth is mortified. "Lower your voice, oh my God."

"No, I don't care!" Piper grabs her hands. "You _kissed_? Why didn't you _tell_ me?"

"It wasn't a happy kiss. I was so angry and he was right there and I just– kissed him, and then I realised I had made a massive mistake and ran off."

"Did he kiss back?"

"I think so."

"Oh, Annabeth," Piper says.

"I know," Annabeth says. She takes her hands from Piper and folds her arms, turning away slightly. "I made such a big mistake. He's never going to want to be friends with us ever again."

"But he broke up with Allison. That has to mean something."

"Oh yeah, like what? That he's secretly in love with me? Give it a break, Piper."

Piper folds her arms. "Has it ever occurred to you that maybe he likes you back?"

"Shockingly, never."

"Oh, come on, Annabeth. You're really not as awful as you think you are."

"I think everyone I've ever talked to might disagree with you on that one."

"What about me? I'm your _best friend_. I love you!"

Annabeth sighs. "That's– that's _different_ , Piper. You love me _because_ you're my best friend and you don't really have standards."

"I take that personally."

"A relationship is a whole other thing. I can't do it."

"Yes you _can_ ," Piper says, and her voice is firm. Annabeth sighs. "Look, Annabeth. I know you've had some self-esteem issues in the past, because at one point you thought you were better than us and then you saw sense, and then you saw too much of it because now you think you're worse than us, but what you don't realise is that you're actually super lovely. No, don't argue with me. Look at me. You and Percy were practically married to eac– Annabeth, _look_ at me. There we go. You were practically married. I've frankly never seen Percy so smitten with someone before."

"He went with Allison."

"And then you kissed him and he broke up with her. That means something."

Annabeth grips her elbows tightly. "I don't know."

"You're his soulmate," Piper says softly. "His initials are literally on your _arm_ , Bethie. These things happen for a reason."

Annabeth manages a wry smile.

Piper touches her elbow. "Come on, we'd best be off. Think about it, okay?"

Annabeth nods. "Okay."

It never appealed to her that maybe Percy could like her back. Maybe their happily ever after is coming sooner than she thought.

They both leave the bathroom.

However, they don't notice one of the stalls flick open the moment the door closes behind them. Drew Tanaka struts out, her phone in her hand, with a smirk on her lips. She presses a button on her phone and holds it up to her ear.

 _"You're his soulmate. His initials are literally on your arm, Bethie. These things happen for a reason."_

Sometimes it's just too easy. Smirking, she walks out.

* * *

"Percy."

Percy closes his locker and sees Drew leaning against the locker next to him, smiling demurely. She looks very pretty today, in a white blouse with a slightly alarming plunge neckline, and blue glittery eyeliner that kind of simultaneously dazzles Percy and also gives him a headache, but, also, like. What's she doing here. "Drew?"

"I think we should talk," she says. "Don't you?"

"Considering this is the first time you've ever willingly spoken to me, I'm not really sure."

"That's not true," Drew says.

"Yes it is."

"Yes, it is," she admits, "but I really feel like you and I could really learn something from each other, don't you think?"

He eyes her. "This hasn't got anything to do with the fact that Allison and I broke up, has it?"

Drew feigns surprise. "What, no, of course not, I didn't even know that happened, my condolences." She holds out her arm. "Walk with me?"

Hedgingly, Percy accepts. He's not quite sure what her motives are, and knowing Drew they're probably nothing short of cruel, but he's oddly intrigued. They haven't spoken enough for her to know any dirt that would properly humiliate him, so he's not afraid of that. Maybe Ali put her up to this.

God, if she starts whining to him about how cute he and Ali looked together he might just shut himself in a locker for the rest of his life.

"So," Drew says. "You and Allison broke up, huh?"

Here we go. Like clockwork, Percy thinks. "Yeah."

"Terrible shame, really," she says insincerely. "Honest, I'm truly sorry for your loss, how unfortunate, this must be a very hard time for you, blah, blah, blah. Old news. However, what I'm really much more interested in is whatever is bubbling between you and Miss Annabeth Chase, so, please, if you have anything to share, I'm all ears."

Percy stops walking. Drew pauses and cocks a perfect eyebrow.

"Annabeth?" he asks, his pulse quickening. Did Allison tell her anything? No. She couldn't have. That would have been too mortifying. She wouldn't have done that to herself. Then how did Drew...? "W–what has she got to do with this?"

"Oh, have you not heard?" Drew asks innocently, in a voice that says she _knows_ Percy hasn't heard. "Word on the street is you and Annabeth are soulmates." She gives him a slightly judgmental overview. "Can almost see why, to be honest. You're both as tragic as the other."

" _Soulmates_?"

"Annabeth even confirmed it herself," Drew says. "I just thought you must have known, because, of course, everyone thought you and Allison were soulmates, but it looks like that may not be true."

"But me and Annabeth aren't soulmates."

Drew pulls a face. "Oh, sweetie." She digs her phone out her pocket. "Here, you might want to take a listen to this."

Tentatively, Percy takes her phone. Already open is the voice recorder app, like Drew had planned this whole talk out, but he doesn't even care. Robotically, he presses play, and holds the phone up to his ear.

"–what you don't realise is that you're actually super lovely," a voice says, slightly crackly with static. Percy can pinpoint it exactly. _Piper_. He can hear the faint buzz of noise around them and somewhere a tap is running, too. This must have been in the bathroom. He's so overwhelmed he doesn't even stop to consider the fact that Drew, like, recorded this in the girls' loos, which is not only weird but also slightly creepy. "No, don't argue with me. Look at me. You and Percy were practically married to eac– Annabeth, _look_ at me. There we go. You were practically married. I've frankly never seen Percy so smitten with someone before."

Percy's eyebrows almost disappear into his hairline. He was _that_ obvious?

Drew clucks disapprovingly at his expression. "Oh, chickee, you haven't even gotten to the best part."

"He went with Allison."

That's another voice Percy could detect from a mile away. _Annabeth_.

"And then you kissed him and he broke up with her. That means something."

Annabeth's voice is tight. "I don't know."

"You're his soulmate," Piper says. "His initials are literally on your _arm_ , Bethie. These things happen for a reason."

And that's the moment Percy's heart stops.

Piper speaks again, but it's all a haze. Annabeth responds, and then there's the sound of a tap being switched off and then a door closing, and then a toilet flushes and there's a sharp crackle of static as Drew obviously moves her phone away from wherever she was recording from. It ends there, but Percy can almost still feel it playing in his head like a broken record.

 _You're his soulmate. His initials are literally on your arm._

Annabeth– Annabeth's his _soulmate_?

Drew watches his expression carefully. "Wild, isn't it? I know, _what_ a rush. I literally got goosebumps simply listening to it." She takes the phone cheerfully out of Percy's hand. He just stares at her. "Well, that's all I really wanted to talk to you about. Toodles!"

She starts to strut off down the corridor, her glossy black hair like a curtain over her shoulders. It's then Percy manages to find his tongue.

"Drew."

She turns around expectantly.

"Why did you show me this?"

Drew cocks an eyebrow. "I'm sorry?"

"I just– I don't _get_ it. You owe me nothing. You're Ali's friend, not mine. What could you possibly get out of showing me this?"

Drew rolls her eyes. "Gosh, you really _are_ clueless. No, Percy. Allison Cooper is not my friend. In fact, I despise her. She's irritating and her voice sounds like nails on a chalkboard, and the fact that some guys find her more attractive than me is simply insulting, because, I mean, just look at that nose. I know you two broke up because she isn't aware I dislike her, and I was the first person she called, because in case you haven't realised everyone in this position of school simply hates each other and I'm the closest thing she has to a real friend. And obviously I hate Annabeth, too, because her boobs are smaller than mine and she literally dresses like a nun and yet _she's_ the hot one, but I don't hate you because your stupidity is actually quite refreshing and in a weird way almost endearing. I thought I'd help you out."

Percy isn't sure what to say. "Uh. Thanks?"

"Don't bother, I won't ever talk to you again." She whips a lip gloss out of her pocket and applies a new coat to her mouth. "Consider this a thank-you for making this disaster we call a friendship group a little less boring. It's always fun to have some naïve fresh meat, even if it's only temporary." She waves at him. "Well, toodle-oo. Go get your girl. I'm sure she's waiting in her ice castle."

Percy manages a smile. "Thank you, Drew."

"Yes, whatever."

And then she's gone.

Percy watches as she disappears down the hall in a flurry of hair and perfume. She regroups at the end with some other girls Percy vaguely recognizes from parties, who all immediately squeal, "Hey girl hey!" and Drew responds accordingly, although now she's pointed it out Percy realises just how obvious it's been all along, because Drew is surprisingly blatant with her feelings. Percy almost expects her to turn around and give Percy a small wink or something, but she doesn't, and he supposes that's fair.

They never really moved in the same way. They were just two planets in different orbits whose atmospheres brushed once.

He looks the other way, and sees Nico hobbling around on Grover's crutches down the hall, before one of them catches on someone's foot and he goes toppling forwards and head-first into the lockers. Grover bursts out in peals of laughter and Jason, the ever-sensible one, grabs Nico's shoulders and starts attempting to extract his head from the locker, and Percy's heart kind of aches because he just misses them so much.

He knows Drew told him to go for it. But before he gets Annabeth, he needs to fix some things with his friends.

He decides to do it at lunch, mainly because there's no other times in the school day where they'll all be together and he'll be allowed to speak about a subject to them that isn't Hooke's Law. Also, the room will be filled with so many people that if statistics kick in and they do reject him (the chance of which is almost scarily high) everyone will be too busy talking to each other to notice him slink into a bathroom and cry.

So. Foolproof.

He grabs his lunch from his locker and clutches it nervously in his hands. He can feel himself begin to sweat already, and he hates it, because, like, _not now_ , but if he doesn't do this now then he never will. And this is the first step to getting his life back on track.

He swallows, and closes his locker. He can do this.

The lunch hall is already bustling when he steps in. He can pinpoint his friends exactly – they're sitting at their usual table, wedged in the corner, and they stick out like a sore thumb because of Jason's football jumper and the bright blue streak Thalia dyes into the front of her hair. They're all laughing, and Nico is gesturing wildly with his arms, and just looking at them is enough to make Percy want to jump ship and abandon the mission altogether, until he hears Annabeth's laugh from all the way across the hall.

No. He can do this.

Setting his shoulders back, he tentatively starts to make his way towards them.

They notice him when he's only a few feet away. Grover looks up first and immediately stops laughing, and gradually so does everyone else, as they see him standing there. Thalia squares up, folding her arms and setting her jaw. Of everyone, she's maybe got the most reason to be pissed. And Percy doesn't blame her. He said some crap. He just hopes this'll be enough to fix it.

He hovers uncertainly, gripping his lunch like it'll run away from him if he doesn't hold it tight enough. He can feel his palms slick with sweat. They're all watching him.

He swallows. "Um. Hi."

Thalia is the first to speak. "Hey."

She sounds cautious, civil. It's like she's talking to a stranger, and that probably hurts the most out of everything.

"Um," he says. His voice is squeaky. "Can– can I sit?"

Thalia watches him for a few moments before shrugging. "Sure. I don't care."

"Thalia," Piper says in a low voice.

Thalia doesn't respond, just stares down at her food.

Percy slides down into his seat. Annabeth is in the one next to him. He tries to balance his tray on the table but it clatters against it, and he realises his hands are shaking. He drops it when he realises and shoves his hands in his pockets, willing them to stop. It's only an inch at most but it still makes a loud noise. Nico flinches. Piper looks sympathetic.

Thalia is unmoving. With a hard look, she spears a potato. "So," she says coldly, staring Percy right in the eyes. "Where's your little girlfriend? Haven't seen her near you all day. Normally the two of you are attached at the hip."

Percy swallows. "That's because we broke up," he says.

Thalia arches her eyebrow. "Now _there's_ a surprise," she says, her voice almost malicious. "Why? What happened? Lover girl couldn't handle the stress of babying you?"

Jason puts down his fork. " _Thalia_ –"

But Percy is going to fight this one until he's been driven into the ground. "Probably," he says, looking her straight back in the eyes, his gaze unwavering. "After all, we all know I'm _such_ a burden to have to deal with."

He sees a momentarily flash of guilt cross her face. It makes him feel a little more confident.

Piper puts down her fork. "Percy–"

"No, it's okay," he says. "I probably deserved that."

"Yeah," Thalia says. "You did."

"Not really, because an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind and all that jazz, but whatever, right," Grover mutters to himself. "Don't listen to me, oh no, just keep on _fighting_ it out."

"We're not fighting," Percy says.

"You were."

"Not anymore. I'm here to apologise."

Thalia properly looks at him now. She's still cautious, which he knows he deserves, but he's adamant on making this right. "Oh?" she says.

"Yeah," he says. He stares at his muffin and considers using it as his distraction, to just pick it apart so he can only remember that and not the whole stress of actually apologizing, and then he realises that no, he deserves this. His punishment is going to be to suffer this out. "I– I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I–" He pauses. "I didn't mean it. Any of it. I was just– angry, and annoyed, and _confused_ , and– and I'm so sorry." He looks up. "To all of you. I– I said some stuff I definitely shouldn't have. And I'm so, so, so sorry. I just, uh. Hope. You guys will take me back as a friend."

"You abandoned us as soon as you had something new and shinier to play with," Thalia says. "You can't just crawl back now that she's gone and expect us to forgive you."

"I broke up with her."

"We know," Piper says.

"You called us trash, Percy," Annabeth says softly, and Percy looks up at her. Her eyes are glitter-soft but they're hard with something else, a determination of sorts. Percy knows he's forgiven, at least to her, but he just needs to prove it. "What does that mean?"

Everyone shifts. This is the first time Annabeth's told them. Suddenly, he realises that maybe they don't know he and Annabeth ended badly.

"You're not," he says. "None of you. You are all so– so _wonderful_. And I don't deserve you. Any of you. I've– learnt some stuff, you know? And you aren't trash. We're all just different from each other. With Ali they were all the same. I think I like it better like this." He manages a weak smile, and he thinks that maybe his eyes are getting wet, but just a little. "I'm really sorry. For everything. I hope you guys can forgive me."

"You crying on us, bro?" Nico teases.

 _Bro_.

"No," Percy says.

There's an arm around his shoulders. It's Annabeth. "It's okay," she says. "Welcome back."

"I'm not going to make this easy on you, Jackson," Thalia promises.

"I wouldn't have expected anything less," he says.

Thalia looks almost pleased at this. "Well, good." She picks up Piper's milkshake. "You ready?"

"Come on, I paid for that," Piper says.

Percy opens his arms wide. "Go for it."

"No, don't go for it," Piper says. "That cost valuable money–"

Thalia empties it all over his head. Everyone cheers, and Percy just laughs, not necessarily at the fact that he's just been covered in a milkshake and will now have to go the rest of the day smelling like sour cream, but the fact that he's back, and it was so, so much easier than he thought. Of course, he knows that it's not going to be that simple. There are inside jokes that he won't get, stories he won't know, and things are still going to be whacked out of alignment for a while, because you can't make up months in only a matter of seconds with a milkshake. And they're not going to let him get away with it so easily. He's going to have to earn their trust back.

But he's _back_ , and that's all that matters at the moment. For the first time in months, he feels a genuine rush of happiness. He's going to be okay, he reckons.

* * *

It's only a matter of time.

Annabeth should have known. She thinks she was just so high off the idea of Percy being _back_ , and not a million miles away in a different universe with a girl like a loaded gun, that she didn't pick up on the signs. Him looking at her, maybe a little too long. Being more affectionate, albeit slightly hesitantly. Lingering touches that Annabeth was never sure if she had imagined up.

It had never appealed to her, she supposes. She'd come to terms with her crush on Percy a while back, now, and the funny thing with crushes is sometimes they spin things out of proportion, so most of the stuff Percy had done had gone straight under the radar, because, like, _as if_ was giving her those eyes in real life. It was probably some hope-fueled fantasy.

It would never happen, basically. He'd only just out of a tricky relationship with a girl he thought was his soulmate. And Annabeth knew this, still does. It's why she let those things go unnoticed, because if she hadn't she may have only broken her heart further.

Well. Until now.

They're both sitting on Percy's bed, doing homework, with a movie on in the background. Or rather, _Annabeth_ is doing homework, and Percy is absently doodling along the margins in his binder, trying to pretend he's not watching the movie as much as he is.

Annabeth hums around the top of her pen. "You're not very subtle, you know."

"What?"

"In half an hour you've only done one question. Not even that."

"Sorry." Percy flops down on the bed. "It's just– you can't put Indiana Jones on and expect me _not_ to watch."

"It's not even the good Indiana Jones movie," Annabeth says. "It's the Temple Of Doom. That's, like. Literally the worst one."

"That's your opinion," Percy says. "Here, what's the answer to eight?"

"You're only on eight? I'm on twenty-three, Percy!"

"Like I said," Percy says. "Indiana Jones provides as a great distraction. You could set this bedroom on fire and I wouldn't notice."

"That's slightly worrying."

He taps his pencil. "Eight?"

She sighs. "Prokaryotic cell. You're on your own for the rest, though."

"Yeah, all right."

It's almost jarring to have Percy back like this. She thinks they all felt the impact of him being gone – it wasn't like losing a limb or anything, because they're not that melodramatic (some will argue, but whatever), but his absence was _notable_. Annabeth could feel it in the way there was always a chair free, there was no longer a communal cookie dealer around, and in the way she would wake up and check her phone and there were no missed calls or texts from 3am about the life expectancy of moths. And now suddenly he's back, and it's weird, but it's also not, because he slotted so easily back in.

You can still see his absence sometimes, like a stain. It's there in the way Nico will reference something that Percy wasn't there to see, and how his laughter will be three seconds behind everyone's, and also in his speech, tell-tale signs of withdrawal from Xanax as he cuts back on, it the way sometimes he can't speak properly, and sometimes he comes into school with dark rings around his eyes, and how he's reaching over for something and then his hands start shaking so badly he can't do anything but frown until they stop.

Annabeth doesn't think Allison will ever know how badly she's affected him. The heartache is different, because she knows Percy fell severely out of love with her weeks before he broke it off. But he's three paces behind in their friendship, and he gets hand tremors and terrible headaches from his medication, and every time it happens Annabeth hates Allison just that bit more.

Percy insists it's fine, and that the symptoms should be fading within the next few weeks. Annabeth chooses to believe him.

They work in comfortable silence for the next ten minutes, the movie providing as soothing background noises. Annabeth is so deeply involved in her work she doesn't notice Percy staring at her, and, trying not to let her discomfort show, she says, "Quit it."

"Quit what?"

"You're staring at me."

"Oh. Sorry." Percy sounds genuinely apologetic. "It's just– you're wearing your hair curly more."

Annabeth arches an eyebrow, trying to hide how her stomach has suddenly erupted into butterflies. "You _just_ noticed?"

"Don't be mean," he says. "It just looks nice."

"Are you saying I looked ugly with it straightened?"

"Of course not, you muppet. It's just nice to see you all natural and stuff."

Annabeth rolls her eyes. "You make no sense."

" _You_ make no sense," Percy mumbles.

She has to roll her eyes again, because seriously.

Two minutes of silence pass again before:

"Annabeth?"

Annabeth looks up. Percy looks suddenly quite serious.

"Yeah?"

He tugs at one of his fingers. "Can– can I ask you something?"

 _He's going to ask you out. He's going to ask you out._

 _Oh my God, shut_ up.

"Sure," she says, trying and probably failing to look casual. "Hit me."

"You– have a soulmate Mark, right?"

Annabeth's heart almost stops in her chest.

"Uh," she says, her pulse fluttering all over her body. "Yeah?"

Her voice comes out as a squeak. She clears her throat.

"Cool," Percy says. He looks just as odd as her, like he already knew the answer. "Great."

"You're being weird, Percy," Annabeth says. Oh God, he knows, this is it. He's never going to look at her in the eyes ever again. He's going to get angry that she never told him, and then he's going to tell her that he doesn't feel the same, and then she's going to see her whole life flash before her eyes because she can't have this friendship ruined yet, not now. It's so fragile and she wants to keep it safe, and if he asks any more questions it's going to be over.

"Shut up, you're weird," Percy says, his voice kind of squeaky. "Um."

Annabeth raises an eyebrow. "Um?"

"What are the initials?"

He says it all in a rush, like he hopes that maybe if he says it quick enough she won't hear it. But she does, as clear as a bell. She just stares at him.

"What?"

"What are the initials on it?" he asks again. "Your soulmate Mark, I mean."

"Yeah, I got that," she says, a little too snippily. "Um. Just– initials, I guess. Why?"

"They're PJ, aren't they?"

That's the moment Annabeth's world grinds to a halt.

They both stare at each other. Percy looks winded, like he's just run a race, like he can't believe he just said that, and Annabeth can hear her heartbeat in her ears, can feel it in the pit of her stomach. This is it. She starts backing away, her throat already beginning to feel tight.

Rather she leaves then gets kicked out. It would hurt less.

"I'm so sorry," she says, her voice trembling. "I'm so sorry."

"Why are you sorry?"

She stops. Percy still looks a little wild, but he doesn't look angry.

"What?"

"Why are you sorry?" He looks genuinely confused.

Annabeth shoves a hand into her hair. She almost wants to rip it out. "B–because! I lied to you! I've got your initials on my soulmate Mark and now you probably think every time I told you how crap Allison was I was just jealous and wanted you all to myself, which is– half true, I guess, but– wait, how the hell did you find out?"

Percy blinks. He looks a little overwhelmed, which isn't very fair because she's the one whose life is currently being torn to shreds, but then again she _did_ just yell at him all the reasons why he should despise her, so maybe he does have an excuse. It takes him a few moments to answer, like he's still processing all her words. "Uh. Around?"

"What does that mean?" A thought hits her. "Oh God, Piper told you, didn't she?"

Percy looks panicked. "No! No, it wasn't Piper."

"Who was it? Thalia?"

"Drew?"

Annabeth almost screams. " _Drew_? How the–"

"Why didn't you tell me your soulmate Mark had my initials on it?"

She's still seething that somehow Drew Tanaka found out, but she supposes that's another conversation for a different day, so she slows her roll and takes a deep breath, trying to expel all her jitters and anger out. With it comes the prickling sensation of tears in her eyes, like every emotion she's felt today is coming out.

Percy sits on the bed, looking confused, upset, overwhelmed, and a little betrayed. Annabeth has to put on her big girl pants and face him. She's already caused this much panic. She can fix this.

She sighs again, and she can feel her voice waver. _For God's sake, not now_. "I– I don't know," she says, and her voice cracks a bit. "I– you were with Ali. I was going to, maybe, I don't know. But then you kept going on about how you'd found your soulmate, and– and you were so adamant about her, about how _she_ – _she_ was your soulmate. I thought maybe I'd got it wrong."

"But–" Percy pauses, like he's trying to process everything. "But you kept telling me Allison was wrong for me."

"That wasn't for me," she says. "Well, maybe a little. But Allison was _bad_ , Percy. I knew that whatever was going on between you two wasn't going to end well. She'd hurt you. Maybe unintentionally, because maybe she really loved you, but she doesn't know how to treat people who aren't on her level. It was going to happen one way or another."

Percy presses his lips together. "If– if you had told me I wouldn't have gone with Allison."

"Yes you would," Annabeth says. "You were in love. And how was I meant to know? I thought if I said anything I'd come off jealous."

Percy exhales through his nose, something that could be interpreted as a laugh. He's still looking down at his knees. "So," he says. "You're my soulmate, then."

"Yeah."

"What do we do now, then?" He looks a bit funny. "Do we– kiss?"

"Well, of course not."

Percy looks affronted. "Wait, what's _that_ supposed to mean?"

"It means we shouldn't kiss right now. Gosh, Percy, keep up."

"Why not?"

"Do you have feelings for me?"

"Of course I do."

Annabeth blinks. She was not expecting him to be so prompt. "What?"

He rolls his eyes. "Obviously I have feelings for you, Annabeth, I broke up with my girlfriend because you kissed me." He gives a funny little side-look, still watery and still tentative, but he's trying. "Gosh, Beth, keep up."

"I'll pluck your eyeballs out."

"Go on, I dare you."

Annabeth sets her shoulders back. "Well. Regardless. We still can't kiss now."

"I don't see why not."

"It's still very early on. We must wait until the time is right."

"Now seems pretty right to me."

"You just got out of a very bad relationship. It would be undiplomatic to force you into something you don't want to do."

"Okay, a, what does diplomacy have to do with anything, and b, I'm literally asking you to kiss me. That's not you forcing me. That's, like. Me forcing you, basically."

"We can't," Annabeth says. "We may enter ourselves into a relationship but we are not allowed to kiss. Not yet, anyway.

Percy stares at her. "What even _are_ you?"

"Well, your soulmate, apparently, so you can't be rude to me. And I'm doing you a favour. You'll appreciate it soon." She brushes her skirt down. "Now, if you don't mind, I'll kindly ask you to stand up, you're wrinkling my homework."

Percy just keeps gawping at her.

Annabeth huffs. " _What_ , Percy?"

"That's– that's it?"

"What does that mean?"

"We're– together now?"

"I mean. That's what I figured."

Percy blinks. "Just. Like that."

"I'd think so."

"Am I the first person you've done this with?"

"Keep up, Percy, we covered the whole 'Annabeth's never had friends' shebang a while ago."

"But now I'm not just your friend."

Involuntarily, Annabeth feels her face flame up. "Well. No."

Percy grins at her. "Oh, this is going to be excellent."

"You cannot use my lack of experience against me, Jackson, or I actually _will_ pluck out your eyeballs."

Percy drapes himself dramatically against her. He wrinkles her homework even more but at this point Annabeth no longer even cares. "I'm your _boooyyfrrrieeennddd_ ," he trills. "And not just that, either. I'm your _soulmate_."

"Yes, yes, don't rub it in."

"I'll rub it in as much as I please." He sighs contentedly. "Oh, it _finally_ feels like everything is falling into place. This is so wonderful."

"Has it not felt that way before?"

"Not really. I always wondered why it didn't really feel complete with Allison. I felt like a bad soulmate, in a way, because I was thinking about another girl and even when the relationship was good I still felt like something was missing." He smiles up at her. "Now I know why."

She smiles back at him, but something feels off. She hesitates, and then says, "Percy, are you okay?"

He frowns. "Yeah, 'course. Why? What's wrong?"

"It's just– you're taking this remarkably well. Almost _too_ well."

He arranges himself so his head is cushioned in her lap. "What does that mean?"

"Considering you just got out of a pretty serious relationship with a girl you thought was your soulmate only to find out she wasn't and you had just let yourself be emotionally manipulated and toyed with for basically nothing and now you've just discovered that one of your best friends was lying to you for months and _she's_ actually your soulmate – well, you're just very– calm about it, I suppose?"

"I mean, I guess." Percy stares thoughtfully up at the ceiling. "I–" He pauses. "The last few weeks with Allison – they were, like. I wasn't properly _present_ , you know? I was numb. I didn't really feel much. Or maybe that was the Xanax, I don't know. Either way, I lived those weeks not all there, kind of? It felt like half of me was down here on earth, and the other half was somewhere else, in outer space. I spent a lot of time in my own head. There was lots of time to think. You learn to drown out the noise at parties, see. Find a bathroom, or a closet, and lock yourself in. Your own bubble. I thought a lot. I think I realized then that I wasn't in love with Allison. That she wasn't my soulmate. I must have known all along, but it was then that I really understood that this was just hurting me. In my head, I think, by the time I ended it with her, we were already over. I didn't feel much doing it."

Annabeth cards her fingers through his hair. He hums a little.

"You haven't said why you weren't surprised it was me," she says softly.

"That was the easy part, Beth. Ali always liked to accuse me of cheating on her with you. Drew Tanaka mentioned it sometimes, too. People expected us to get together, did you know that?"

"It doesn't surprise me."

"Yeah, me neither. At the beginning it did, because we're very different, but you're a good kind of different, you know? Kind of like Ali, but with those foam corner protectors."

"That's the biggest insult you've ever given me."

"You're also much prettier and smarter and your hair is shinier and you're much more pleasurable to be around."

"Better."

He laughs a little. "I had a crush on you forever, too."

"Did you really?"

"Of course I did. You were unattainable and mysterious and one of the only people on my level of wit and humour."

"You've just offended almost all of our friends."

"They can deal. We were best friends and I loved you for it. When me and Ali got together I was so scared at what it meant. I did research, you know. To check if it was normal to have a crush on someone who wasn't your soulmate. All the websites said it was totally normal, and it would just fade. But it didn't fade. I just kind of pegged it down to me missing you."

Annabeth smiles wryly.

"I kept thinking about you, whenever I was with her. We'd be talking and she'd say something and I'd be like oh, Annabeth would say something like that, or I'd see someone with blonde hair and be like, oh, Annabeth has blonde hair, and I hated myself for it, because I thought I was being, like. Disloyal."

"As if you could ever be disloyal."

"If Allison really was my soulmate then I would have."

"But if she really was your soulmate then you wouldn't be here right now telling me how much you love me," Annabeth says. "Would you?"

Percy rolls his eyes fondly. "No."

She thumbs a piece of his fringe off his forehead. "Well, there you go."

He beams up at her contentedly. "Can I kiss you now?"

"No."

"Aw, come on. What's a guy got to do?"

"Soon," Annabeth promises. When Percy still looks grumpy, she laces their fingers together, revels in the fact that she can _do that now_ , and gives his hand a quick kiss. "One day we'll both look at each other and we'll _know_ , and then we'll kiss and it will be perfect and so worth the wait. I'm not going to rush you into anything, Percy. You say you're ready but you're not. Our first proper kiss that isn't fueled with anger and frustration will be simply _wonderful_."

Percy sighs, but he's smiling. "You certainly keep a guy on his toes."

"I try," Annabeth says. "Now, actually get off my homework, you're properly ruining it."

* * *

"Percy, my man!" Grover cheers as Percy sits down. "I have some news for _you_."

"So do I," Thalia says, swooping out of nowhere and taking her seat opposite them. She smiles at them innocently, sucking the straw of her Coke into her mouth. "No one cares about anything you ever have to say."

"Lovely to see you too," Grover says. "Cheerful as always."

Thalia preens.

"No, but this is serious," he says. "Percy. Are you ready?"

Percy pauses. "Uh. I think so?"

"Good. Prepare." Grover sucks in a deep, dramatic breath. "The news about you and Ali's split broke today."

Percy frowns. "Oh, God, what did she say?"

"It's quite bad," Grover says. "Apparently you cheated on her with Annabeth."

"Believable," Thalia says. "Do you think we should take a stand?"

"No," Percy says. "I don't mind."

"Really?" Grover asks, concerned. "Percy, this isn't very good. Your social life is going to be permanently destroyed."

"I never really had one to begin with," Percy says. "And the only people I care about are you guys, who know the truth, so that's all that matters to me."

Thalia smirks at him. "That's really cheesy."

"It's true."

"Aw," Grover says. "Well, I love you too, bro."

Jason, Nico and Piper appear behind him. "Hey!" Piper says. "Did we miss anything?"

"Not really," Thalia says, sipping her drink. "Just the downfall of Percy's social life."

"Right, so nothing unusual," Piper says, taking a seat. Jason takes the one next to her, and Nico plops down next to Grover. "How are you dealing with this, Percy?"

"Well," he says. "I don't really care."

"That's the spirit," Jason says. "Besides, it's just Allison Cooper. I'm sure your social life isn't totally over."

"Oh, but it is," Thalia says. "Down in flames. Destroyed. Crumpled to pieces, practically. Allison has the school at her fingertips. Percy is dead meat."

"Gee, thanks," Percy grumbles.

"You are so welcome. But the good news is, is that we're really the only people Percy needs in his life, because we're the only people who could ever possibly live up to his expectations, seeing as we set them so high, obviously."

"Obviously," Grover says.

"So it's not completely over," Thalia says. "Not to the people who matter."

"Exactly," Piper says.

"Besides," Jason says. "I have some good connections. If you ever want to go to another party just hit me up."

"As generous and attractive that offer is, I'll pass," Percy says.

"Good lad," Thalia says. "Parties were never a good look on you."

"Have you ever been to a party before, Thalia?" Grover asks.

"Of course not, look at me. But I have more social capability in my finger then Percy does in his entire body, so if I couldn't survive I'm not exactly sure why you ever thought you could, either."

"It wasn't exactly optional."

"Excuses, excuses."

"Hey, where's Annabeth?" Nico asks suddenly, and Percy is just about to frown, because oh yeah, _where is she_ , until he feels a hand slide across his shoulders.

"I'm here," Annabeth says, dropping herself into the chair next to him. "Sorry, Miss Wyatt kept me after class to talk to me."

Percy throws his arm around her shoulders, and presses a short kiss to her temple. "S'alright. You're here now, anyway."

"Precisely," Annabeth says.

There is complete silence.

Percy raises his eyebrows. "What?"

Grover waves his finger, almost confusedly. "You– two are– you're an _item_?"

"Well, yeah," Percy says.

Piper looks furious. "Since _when_?"

"Oh dear," Nico says. "We've woken Godzilla."

"Yesterday," Annabeth says. "Percy went down on one knee and confessed his feelings."

"That's not how it happened at all."

"And you didn't think to _tell_ me?" Piper squawks, her voice going very high-pitched.

"Calm down, McLean," Thalia says. "You'll burst a vein."  
"I'll burst _you_! Why didn't you guys tell me?"

"Our life doesn't revolve around you," Percy says, for no other reason then to get a rise out of her.

"Hey, don't provoke her," Jason says. "Piper, breathe."

"I'm very cross at you," Piper says. "Both of you. How could you not tell me? We've had loads of classes together today! There were plenty of opportunities!"

"Just never came up, I guess."

Piper huffs. "This is the yellow Mark situation all over again."

Percy groans and Annabeth bursts out laughing.

"I love inside jokes I'm not part of," Grover says.

"Percy's Mark turned yellow before Piper's did," Jason explains. "Piper was a little– peeved about it. Still is, apparently."

"I'm not still peeved," Piper says. "I've grown up. Matured."

"In what ways?" Thalia mutters.

"Like a bad curry," Nico says, and Thalia snorts and high-fives him.

Piper ignores them. "Well, in any case," she says. "I'm very pleased for both of you. Although I am still a little irritated that you didn't tell me."

"It happened yesterday, Piper," Annabeth says, trying to hide her fondness.

"Yeah, Piper," Thalia says. "Besides, they've, like, been practically dating since they first became friends. You should have just assumed they were an item the moment they started wandering around together. That's what I did. This is no surprise."

Piper just huffs. "Whatever."

"What she means to say," Jason says, "is that we're both very happy for you. Congratulations. You both deserve this."

"I'll say," Nico says, with a mouthful of guacamole. "You both put us through Hell and back with his soulmate Mark nonsense. You divided our ranks! It was quite Spartan. The _least_ we deserve is for you to stay together forever."

"Let's hope so," Percy says. "I've had quite enough madness for one year." He squeezes her shoulder. "You and me against the world, then, huh?"

"Oh." Annabeth pulls a face. "About that."

Percy's smile starts to slip away. "What?"

Annabeth puts a hand on his shoulder. "I don't know how to break this to you, Percy, but– I've got a new soulmate Mark."

There is complete silence.

And then: "that was a joke, by the way," Annabeth says. "I–I don't _actually_ have a new Mark. You can laugh."

Nico dramatically collapses against the table. "My heart!"

"You had me worried there," Percy admits.

"Too soon, Chase," Thalia says. "Too soon. We're all still sore."

Annabeth scowls at them. "You babies."

"It was a traumatic time for all of us," Nico says seriously. "I trust that you respect that."

"Just you wait," Annabeth grumbles. "One day I'll get a new soulmate Mark to spite you all."

Percy laughs, and, despite herself, Piper does, too. He's never felt so content with anything before in his life. He's got Annabeth tucked under his arm and her initials on his wrist, and he's got his friends absently chucking gummy worms at each other across the table, and through the windows of the cafeteria the sun is beginning to shine a little, too, the first bit of sun they've had in a while.

Everything is going to be okay. He just knows it.

* * *

It's a Saturday when Percy shows up randomly at Annabeth's bedroom door.

She props herself up on her elbows from her bed. "Hey," she says. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm taking you out," he says.

"What? Where? And why didn't you tell me about it before? I haven't even showered yet!"

"Well, then, drama queen, shower, and we'll go."

"Where?"

"That's a surprise."

Annabeth just rolls her eyes and climbs gracelessly off her bed. "Give me ten minutes."

She quickly scrubs herself down in the shower, getting off all the grease of yesterday (she and Piper had decided it would be a smart idea to watch all of the rom-coms Netflix had to offer in one day, and they had ended the day in their forth bag of family-sized Doritos, covered in popcorn grease and body odour from not having showered) as fast as she can. She dries off then wriggles into her nicest summer dress, and then steps out of the bathroom. "I'm ready."

"God, you took years." Percy grins at her. "Can we leave now?"

"If you keep that up I won't come."

"And what a shame that would be." He takes her hand. "Come on, let's go."

He doesn't tell her where they're going. Annabeth allows herself to be dragged outside. It's a nice day, with sunshine and blue skies, and she marvels at it as he leads her down the road. Normally Annabeth is quite impatient with things like this – she likes knowing when and where she's going, and she likes being in control. She rather hates surprises. But she's just so in awe of the beautiful weather and the fact that it's _Percy_ taking her out she barely even complains once.

("For the sixteenth time, Beth, I'm not saying."

"I'm your soulmate! You have to tell me things!")

They turn down a few streets, and the glamourous mansions gradually morph into ordinary suburbs, so similar to Annabeth's old home that she almost feels a sense of familiarity. Annabeth smiles fondly as Percy leads her past gardens and picket fences, remembering what it was like to live in a place like this. Living with Piper is quite crazy, because everything is amplified. Small rose garden here? They've got almost an acre of land for rose farming. Brass doorknobs? They've got a solid gold bell.

An actual solid gold bell.

It's almost relieving to walk past these places now. If Annabeth spent any more time living in a place like that without any more glances of places like this she might just scream. She's not sure how Piper does it, frankly.

Eventually, it does get the best of her, and she squeezes his hand so he looks at her.

"Honestly, Percy," Annabeth says. "Where are we going?"

Percy stops, so she does, too. He takes both of her hands. "I recently ended a relationship because us being together wasn't good for me," he says softly. "I think it's time you fix one up."

Annabeth furrows her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

They start walking again. "Piper told me," he says. "About– about your parents. About what they were really like."

It begins to dawn on Annabeth. "Percy, no..."

"I grew up without my dad, Annabeth," he says. "I don't want you to do the same."

Annabeth suddenly realises why everything was beginning to look familiar. This was her old neighbourhood. There are all the houses she recognises, some kids skateboarding further down the street she knows from when she was little and everyone still threw housewarming parties, and, only a maybe thirty-second walk away, is her old house.

Her dad is probably in there right now. Camped out in the basement, surrounded by his aeroplane models and a crappy lamp that Annabeth used to change the lightbulbs of because he'd be so focused he wouldn't notice when they'd blow. And they'd blow often. He kept them on twenty-four seven, because the basement was all he was when he wasn't out.

Annabeth can't move. She hasn't been here in almost a year.

"I–" she stammers.

Percy smiles, a little awkwardly. "It's okay."

"Does– does he know? That we're here?"

"Piper called. Said we were coming to pick up more stuff. He doesn't know that you're coming, though."

Annabeth can only stare.

It's the house she was born in, the house she grew up in. It grew toxic because of her mother, and then she hightailed it out of there, and then it kind of went back to normal, but there were big gaping holes everywhere that they couldn't fix. Frederick didn't know how to be a dad and Annabeth didn't know how to love people, so he locked himself downstairs and she locked herself upstairs and they only saw each other in passing. But he tried, and that's what stopped Annabeth from leaving to California, because whenever they _did_ see each other, he would reach out, squeeze her shoulder, comment awkwardly on how nice she looked in her dress, offer to paint her nails, and did, clumsily, pull one of her curls and marvel at how long her hair was growing. She would come home late and there would be a plate of pasta waiting on the side, and when she first got her period she sat and cried and Frederick avoided her like the plague until there was a quiet knock at her bedroom door and when she opened it he was there, with armfuls of pads and tampons, in all shapes and scents and sizes, and he said, "I didn't know what to get, there was just so many options."

Athena was rotten, and Annabeth will never change that opinion. And she doesn't regret moving out, because she's gained more yellow Marks in one year then she has her whole life, and she found her soulmate, and she's happy.

But Frederick made her who she was. Awkwardly, and clumsily, and a little unsurely, but he did.

It's an old house with an old man sitting inside it, and it's her old life, and she wants it back.

Annabeth takes a deep breath. "I can do this."

"Are you sure?" Percy says.

She exhales, a little shakily. "As I'll ever be."

Together, they walk up to the front door. It's still as Annabeth remembered. Nothing has changed. There are still ghostly chalk drawings on the porch and a row of pots with shrivelled plants, hanging dead, in them, that have always been there, because Athena was the gardener of them all, and when she left neither of them cared enough to clear them out.

Setting her shoulders back, Annabeth raps on the door.

"Coming!" a voice calls from behind it, and Annabeth's heart constricts, because that's her _dad_. "Sorry, sorry, I'll be there soon."

"Clearly your impeccable manners came from your dad," Percy says.

"Shut up."

The door flings open, and suddenly _there he is_. He's wearing faded corduroys and a shirt that's been haphazardly and also very wrongly buttoned up, and also a pair of glasses, and he looks just a little bit older, with a few more lines in his face, but that's all that's changed. He's still the same. The house behind him is still the same.

Annabeth is the only thing that's different. But maybe that's a good thing.

Frederick is silent for a few moments. He just stands there, blinking, like he can't quite believe what he's seeing. Finally, he opens his mouth. "Annabeth?" he asks, his voice a little shaky.

Annabeth manages a smile. "Hey, Dad."

"Oh, Annabeth." And then his arms are reaching out and engulfing her in a hug, and at first she tenses up because she doesn't think her dad has ever hugged her before, but then she sees Percy in the reflection of the windows, with his hands in his pockets, smiling awkwardly at her back, and relaxes, and hugs him back.

This is probably the only time they'll ever do this again. Annabeth should savour it while she can.

"Oh, Annabeth," Frederick says again, his voice thick. "I thought– I thought I'd never see you again. Are you okay? How have you been? Oh, my dear, you've changed, you're so beautiful."

Annabeth gives him a small smile. "I'm okay. I've been living with Piper."

"Yes, Piper! She talked to me on the phone, said she was coming to pick up some of your old stuff." His eyes well with tears again. Annabeth is a little taken aback, because she's never seen him express so much emotion before, but it's a time for firsts, she supposes. "Annabeth, I'm– so, so sorry, for how we left thigs. Your mother..."

"She's not worthy of us," Annabeth says. "She's as much my mother as she is a cantaloupe."

Percy snorts.

"But," Annabeth continues, taking her dad's hands. "You– you're my dad. And you're a good dad."

Frederick straightens. "Are you coming home?" he whispers hopefully.

Annabeth hesitates. She hadn't thought that far ahead. She meets Percy's eyes and he just shrugs, and she expected just as much, because it's _her_ decision. And truthfully, she's torn. Athena's gone, hopefully forever. Frederick wants her back, and this is the house she grew up in.

Then again, Piper's house has become a home, too. Aphrodite is vacant but she's loving, and gives Annabeth a big hug and kiss whenever she sees her, and she buys her whatever she wants, and one day she walked in and found Annabeth frowning at herself in the mirror because was trying to let her hair go natural but years of constant ironing had killed the curl and now it was just a big frizzy mess, and she had come in with some mousse and a hair diffuser and patiently taught her how to use them.

It's senior year. Annabeth has found her soulmate, and made some of the best friends she's ever had. And they all still have bumps, because Percy had to get Piper to talk to Frederick over the phone, and Annabeth still despises most of the school's population, but they're getting there.

"No," she says. "I love you, and I'll visit as much as I can, but– but Piper's is my home now, too. You're still my dad, and I love you so much. You've made me who I am."

"I made you who you were," Frederick corrects. "You've made you who you are now. And I understand." He turns to Percy. "You– you take good care of her, you hear me?"

Percy grins, bashfully, and ducks his head. "Yes, sir," he says to Frederick's right eyebrow.

"Good." Frederick gives Annabeth a smile, weathered and tired, but a smile. "You– visit me, okay? Don't forget about your old man."

"I won't," Annabeth says. "I promise."

They don't hug again. Instead, they both just nod at each other.

"You're a brave girl, Annabeth," Frederick says. "Remember that."

Annabeth feels a lump form in her throat. She swallows it down determinedly and nods again.

"I love you."

"I love you, too, Dad."

And then that's it.

"Do you feel better?" Percy asks as they walk back down the street. "I mean, you don't hate me or anything, right?"

Annabeth laughs. "Why would I hate you?"

"It's, like. An anxiety thing. You technically didn't ask to come here, or agree to, either. And in order for me to feel relaxed about doing something it needs to have been agreed to at least eight times."

Annabeth rolls her eyes and kisses his cheek. "It was _fine_ , Percy."

"Well." He looks very pleased with himself. "It pays to be spontaneous, then."

"Sometimes. You need to warn me in hindsight if we're doing something, though. I don't like you seeing me before I've showered. I look all grotty and everything."

"You? Grotty? Never! I've never been more attracted to you then I was when I walked into your bedroom this morning and I saw you covered in zit cream and smeared makeup with greasy hair."

Annabeth scowls at him. "You suck."

"I quite disagree, but whatever." He grabs her hand and swings it, almost childishly. Annabeth has to resist the urge roll her eyes. "This is nice."

"Holding hands?"

"Us. Together. Just chilling."

"That's generally what people do."

He knocks his hip against hers. "Don't be difficult, I'm trying to have a moment."

"Oh, sorry. Do continue to woo me."

"Thanks." They walk in silence for a few moments longer. Annabeth feels like she's in a dream. Everything is soft-coloured and the sun is pleasant and she knows she looks great in her sundress, too. "Who'd have thought it'd come to this, huh?"

"What do you mean?"

"Only a year ago I was terrified of you, and you were queen of the school. You and Piper despised each other, you had no friends and my life was generally the same, just minus you. Now we're dating. Not even that, we're soulmates. _Soulmates_ , Annabeth. You and Piper are best friends and we all love each other, like one big polyamorous family."

"Don't ever use that term ever again."

Percy grins down at her. "I don't know about you, Beth, but I think this has been one of the best years of my life."

"Despite all the Allison drama?"

"Are you kidding? _Especially_ because of the Allison drama. She was pretty awful and I regret most of the things I did but I learnt lots and lots, and now I think I love you all just that little bit more, because with her I learnt just how easy it is to despise your friends. And I don't want to ever, ever have that with any of you."

Annabeth lets go of Percy's hand, taking his wrist instead. She turns it around, so you can see the red AC inked right on his vein.

"I mean, look at us, Annabeth," he says, and she looks up at him. "We're, like. Unstoppable."

She thumbs over her Mark. "Yeah."

"This whole soulmate sham is a bit frustrating at times," Percy tells her. "And we know firsthand just how much chaos it can cause. And who knows? Maybe we'll stay together forever, or maybe we'll break up next year. But for now, I think we're infinite."

Annabeth smiles up at him. "I love you a lot, you know that?"

"I love you too, Beth."

They take each other's hands and set back home. The sun shines down on them from the tops of the roofs.

 _Finally_ , everything is perfect.

* * *

 **A/N and then a meteorite hit and they all died the end**

 **kidding kidding they got their happily ever after**

 **first off - thank you to absolutely EVERYONE who reviewed last chapter! it means the world to me that all of you liked this so much, and im so very glad that you were kind of hyped for this chapter. and thus this concludes the end of my soulmate au and WHAT a journey may i say**

 **please tell me what you thought pals! thanks for reading so much of this all in one go haha x**

 **notes:**

\- marks appear every time you look someone in the eyes.

\- marks fade if you haven't had contact with the person for over a year. for example, you see your grandma, so her mark comes up blue. then you don't see her for two years. her mark fades.

\- each mark has initials marked into them of the person they belong to.

\- each mark is also absolutely tiny because as i was writing this i realised some people would have absolutely millions upon millions of marks but shhahHHH whatever

\- they appear everywhere except the soles of your feet, the palms of your hands, your private parts and your face.

\- marks are completely normal. it's as normal as someone having a nose. that's why percy was looked at a little weirdly, because he literally only has six. it's as severe as someone in our universe thing missing an eyeball or limb.

\- percy also suffers with extreme social anxiety, which is why he finds it so difficult to make friends and talk to people on transport.

 **also:**

\- percy and annabeth's first kiss was on a picnic they had with all their friends. they were eating sandwiches and drinking lemonade and percy looked over and their eyes met and they knew that then was the moment they wanted to share their first kiss. thalia sprinkled crisps in their hair and nico screamed a lot.

 **thanks again for reading x**


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